Starter home: Douglas, Cork €210,000

Location the big attraction for three-bed in Grange, says Trish Dromey.

Size: 116 sq m (1,252 sq ft)

Bedrooms: 3

Bathrooms: 2

BER: E1

Now that summer is over, first time buyers are back house hunting with renewed enthusiasm.

Quite a good number of them turned up at open viewings of 22 Hillside, Pinecroft, Grange in Douglas.

A three bed semi in a mature residential area, within two kilometres of Douglas village, it secured a bid of €215,000, €5,000 above the asking price, in its first week on the market.

Paul O’Shea of Sherry FitzGerald says it’s a very well located family home with 1,252 sq ft of living space.

Well cared for by its current owners it may require some modernisation and updating and the E1 energy could be improved on.

Ground floor accommodation includes a front living room with an electric fire as well as a kitchen with fitted units and a second carpeted sitting room at the rear.

Behind the attached garage and alongside the kitchen is a tiled dining room with patio doors.

There’s also a guest WC and the garage, which is currently used as a utility room.

The first floor has a bathroom and three bedrooms including two with built-in wardrobes.

The house has a garden with off street parking at the front and a lawn and a patio at the rear.

Mr O’Shea says that all the viewings have been with first time buyers attracted by the location.

“The area offers schools, regular bus services and easy access to the south link road,’’ he says pointing out that a buyer looking for extra space could convert the garage.

Verdict: Not expected to linger too long on the market