A Cork City 'villa' for under €300K? Try stylish 60 McCurtain Villas near UCC and the Lough

Nothing at all to do at early 1900s terraced townhouse in buildings called after assassinated Cork Mayor Tomás MacCurtain

Sat, 22 Jan, 2022 - 12:00

Property Editor Tommy Barker reports

Bandon Road, Cork City
€290,000
Size	84 sq m (890 sq ft)
Bedrooms	3
Bathrooms	2
BER	C1

A GROWING family brings the smart, superbly-set and charming townhouse No 60 McCurtain Villas to Cork city's housing market early in 2022 – and, pick up and interest in it is swift, say selling agents Patricia Stokes Auctioneers, who launches it just under the €300k price mark.

Two former reception rooms now joined into one larger one

The compact and very well presented three-bed home is set between College Road and the Bandon Road, just before it splits into the Magazine Road and Glasheen Road, just down the run of 'villas' from the Lough Credit Union, and community-friendly fruit and heating supplies shop Con's.

Dating to the first half of the 1900s, McCurtain Villas numbers about 80 houses, most in terraces of fours and eights and commemorates former Cork City Lord Mayor Tómas MacCurtain, assassinated in March 1920, with similar design houses such as French's Villas, and McSwiney Villas, commemorating another Lord Mayor, Terence MacSwiney who died on hunger strike in Brixton prison, also in tumultuous times of March 1920.

No 60 McCurtain Villas (the surname spelling of both MacSwiney and MacCurtain varies) has been owned by a young family, very committed to city convenience and easy commutes, Ms Stokes notes, one working locally in UCC, the other in the city centre. They bought here only six years back, with the Price Register showing it making €247,000 at the time, just over its then-€245k AMV: with their family swelling in short order, they're trading up, to a Leeside spot still within easy commute, pretty much still on the flat on the city.

Sunny rear at No 60 McCurtain Villas, off Bandon Road

Ms Stokes guide the 84 sq m/890 sq ft No 60 at €290,000, and says it's in a line of private or family-owned homes on the row with a very rooted, neighbourly feel. (The same agent also sold No 61 next door, just back in 2019, when it made €275,000, and describes McCurtain Villas as “an enclave.”)

Despite McCurtain Villas's proximity to UCC, the majority of houses here are owner-occupied rather than let to students given their relative size and bedrooms tally (typically three-beds,) and all of the interest she is picking up so so far is from intending owner-occupiers too, primarily first-time buyers, looking for a relatively affordable and convenient place to settle into.

It's described as being in turnkey condition, having been upgraded and enhanced by its current owners, one of whom is in the broad, professional design business.

The vendors have, she says, maintained it well, and also kept original features, and it gets a very respectable C1 BER, with central heating via gas.

Like its neighbours, No 60's facade is a mix of dash and red brick, and the threshold step is an original, worn chunk of limestone, while the front garden is still bounded by original cast or wrought iron railings, with a rowan/ash tree in the front lawn. Some of the neighbours have, in the past, opened up their front gardens for off-street parking, but it's a minority overall, with much integrity along the rows and some of the neighbours have done significant and contemporary upgrades, notably in some of the end terraced homes.

Trish Stokes says much of the charm and natural features of a c 100-year-old home are in place, with character sloping ceilings in some of the bedrooms, and there's an old skylight over the landing.

It hasn't been extended but the two original ground floor bedrooms have been opened up one into the other for a front-to-back main living space, very bright as a result.

This open plan room now is c 22' by 11,' with slender double doors to a decked rear patio with a westerly aspect. The floor here is Junker's oak, and there are attractive display/storage inserts (where the door to the once-separate rear reception room is now removed and replaced on either side for storage in the airy room and hall), but the space now is denuded of original fireplaces.

The lattice-glazed, double-glazed front door opens to a hall with a straight vision through the rear, galley-style kitchen with glazed, single door and side glazed panel to the back and flooring from hall thru' the kitchen in red terracotta tiles, looking suitably old fashioned.

Internal doors now are in oak, and the ground floor also has a small guest WC just on the left on entry, while the kitchen behind has simple white units on either side of the galley space and, overall, No 60 “now presents as a bright, warm modern home finished with tasteful touches,” says the auctioneer.

The rear garden has a great aspect, west and south for light and with a full-width timber deck with external power supply, lot beds, lots of shrubs and planting up for spring and summer colour, including a mature buddleia, much loved by butterflies.

Bookings to view have been steadily rolling in, not surprisingly as there's such a dearth of stock at this early stage of the year, but also in its favour are the AMV price point at €290,000, and the sheer handiness of the location so close to shops (there's a busy Centra up the Bandon Road by Cissie Young's pub), several bars, cafes and takeaways, as well as the legendary Jackie Lennox's, while the slowly rejuvenating Barrack Street beyond adds further to the mix.

Then, there's the proximity of the UCC campus, for walks or for work, with the acclaimed Glucksman Gallery in its lower, Lee-side grounds, youthful vibe and beyond again, the Mardyke, sports facilities, Fitzgeralds Park and the incrementally growing linking up of riverside walks from the Lee Fields to the city centre.

VERDICT: Villa-lite and city living, made easy, but bidding may end up being very competitive, and No 16 nearby, which is end-terrace with a long back garden, made €315k in 2021.