Cottage within easy reach of Cork city

Glounthaune, Co Cork Price: €230,000

Size: 75sq m (800sq ft)

Bedrooms: 1

Bathrooms: 1

BER: G

The gardens at Highland Cottage in Glounthaune are looking a bit bare at this time of year but come spring, a new owner will get a chance to enjoy them in full colour.

A traditional roadside cottage built in the 1940s, it has a site of almost a third of an acre in which the current owners have obviously spent a great deal of time. In addition to having lawns, mature trees and beds with rose bushes and flowering shrubs the gardens also have timber arches and some picket fencing.

This one-bed cottage which has been owned by the same family for many years and while the property is well kept it is in need of updating and modernisation.

Guiding it at €235,000, Robert O’Keeffe of Irish & European Auctioneers says viewings have been busy, mostly with first-time buyers.

"Some are looking for a country cottage within easy reach of the city and others have been considering the possibilities of using the site to extend," he says. The location, a little over four kilometres from the Dunkettle Interchange, is seen as a key attraction. "It’s within minutes walk to Glounthaune village with a church, shops and schools and both the Glounthaune and the Little Island train stations are easily accessible," he adds.

Accommodation in the house includes a carpeted lounge with a tiled fireplace, a bedroom with fitted wardrobes, and a bathroom. To the rear there’s a kitchen diner with fitted units as well as a very small utility area. Upstairs three’s a large carpeted attic room.

Verdict: Has quite a wide appeal - to first-time buyers, downsizers, gardeners and buyers with extension plans.