A seaside gem in Youghal for €495,000

East Cork gem is in an enviable spot across from the beach, and near a planned greenway on the old train line

5 Front Strand, Youghal, Co Cork is a six-bed, 248 sq m, end-of-terrace property. Pictures: Karen Dempsey Photography

Youghal, East Cork
€495,000
Size	248 sq m
Bedrooms	6
Bathrooms	6
BER	Exempt

PRIOR to the unforgiveable act of closing the rail line to Youghal, half the population of Cork City packed its golden Front Strand of a summer Sunday, everyone wishing they could stay forever in one of the glorious Victorian homes just yards from the beach.

The lucky ones did get to stay, through careful forward planning, booking the same two-week holiday slot in one of those splendid, three-storey properties year after year.

Families of workers at two of the city’s then biggest employers, Dunlop’s and Fords, were particularly fond of Bayview House.

Annual slots were jealously guarded because at No 5, Bayview, the burden of cooking for ravenous youngsters was lifted for hardworking mothers — they simply supplied the food to the patrons of Bayview House, and meals were served up.

“The women loved it because they didn’t have to do any cooking and they could go off enjoying the sunshine and the swimming,” says the owner.

“All they had to do was bring the food and each family had certain shelves of the cupboard in which to store it. It was bed and board and my husband’s father did all of the cooking at the time,” she adds.

The woman who is now selling Bayview House, having run it herself for decades as a successful B&B, married into the business.

Her late husband’s parents married young, bought the house in the 1940s, did it up, and opened it up to bed and board.

When they died young, the house passed to their son who lived in it for 70 years, during which time he and his wife ran the B&B, modernising it over the years, adding ensuites to each bedroom, replacing the roof, restoring gorgeous old floorboards. It did well, proving particularly popular with French and German visitors.

The business ran until 2009 when the husband’s ill health took its toll and they decided to call it a day. Sadly, he passed away two years ago and now, after 41 years, the woman of the house is ready to move on.

“I’ll stay in Youghal if I can because I love the people here and I love my neighbours so I don’t want to leave. But I need to downsize,” she says. And so Bayview House, a home that contributed so richly to the treasured memories of so many, is up for sale, and along with, it the opportunity not to have to leave the seaside after a long, hot sunny day.

Brian Gleeson of Brian Gleeson Property, who launched the six-bed, 248 sq m, end-of-terrace property at €495,000, says he’s already up to an offer of €510,000.

“The people who are actively bidding are interested in making it their full-time home,” he says.

“But there is a great opportunity to also generate income because it comes with a coach house, which could be used for AirBnB.

“That coach house could be a lovely little earner, given the location, so close to beach, and the people who are looking at Bayview can see the potential it holds,” Mr Gleeson adds.

Those who are looking include potential buyers from Cork and Dublin, as well as members of the Irish diaspora, he says.

The main house has everything you could wish for in a seaside home, principally magnificent light and views, but also the attractive qualities of a Victorian property such as high ceilings, original fireplaces and floorboards, a period staircase, and large bay windows to the front.

The double doors of the entrance porch have coloured glass panels and open into a bright hallway, with light flooding through a window at the rear and also through a feature arched window on the return of the stairs.

On one side of the hallway is the dining room, which looks seaward, with an open arch between it and the kitchen. The kitchen looks out towards the old rail line, which should be operating as a greenway within two years.

At the opposite side of the hallway, making the most of those bay windows is a beautifully-presented sitting room, and behind it a double bedroom with ensuite. There’s also a guest WC.

The best bedrooms in the house are those with magnificent sea views on the first floor. All four first-floor bedrooms are doubles, with ensuites. A lower ground or basement floor brings more choice and four more good-sized rooms, one of which the vendor uses for her artwork. Another was her husband’s tool room, and there’s a utility, bathroom, lounge, and kitchenette.

Out back is a yard and, off it, the coach house, which consists of a living room, two bedrooms, and a bathroom. It’s right next to what will be the greenway. It needs an upgrade, but probably worth the investment, given the location.

Mr Gleeson points out that it’s just metres from the Front Strand and Youghal’s Blue Flag beach and of or course Ireland’s newest, longest eco-boardwalk, which runs from nearby Claycastle right down to the Quality Hotel, where an outdoor mobile sauna and a large outdoor seating area are added attractions.

Mr Gleeson says there’s strong interest in Bayview House, as properties of this quality along the Front Strand aren’t easy to come by. The most recent comparable sale was of Oceanville, a slightly smaller, extensively renovated home, which Mr Gleeson sold in 2020 for €555,000. Youghal is just 45 minutes from Cork city and less than 30 minutes by car from Midleton

VERDICT: A true seaside gem with stunning views.