Trading up: South Douglas Road, Cork; €235,000

Billed as a prospect for a first-time buyer, and priced at €235,000, there’s every chance yet that Shalamar will be bought by a trader down, or a trader-in, driven by it location.

Size: 81sq m (880 sq ft) 

Bathrooms: 1 

Bedrooms: 3 

BER: C3

Currently very modest-sized at just about 880 sq ft, Shalamar is in a nice setting called Westview, at the city end of the South Douglas Road, with its western boundary formed by the high, old stone walls of St Finbarr’s Hospital.

It has access points to the city link road, inbound and outbound, just 200 yards away, plus a new city park due nearby on the civic amenity site.

Westview’s a cul-de-sac park, with a mix of terraced homes and semis, and there’s scope to build further on the side/side-garden, as a next door neighbour has done already in a sympathetic dash blend.

Selling agent for Shalamar, aka 33 Westview, is Florence Gabriel of Sherry FitzGerald, who says it’s in very good condition, inside and out, on a corner site with attractive walled-in, west-facing back garden.

Right now, the accommodation is quite basic: no guest WC, no utility, and no en suite bedrooms, but for a starter home that mightn’t bother a young buyer too much.

But, for those keen to buy because of the inner suburban location, within a walk of the city centre, it may be case of adding more space and utility straight away.

VERDICT: Wide appeal.