Starter Homes: Pretty Waterford coastal stone cottage with a modern interior for €295,000

Homes for first-time buyers to consider in Dunmore East, Youghal, Ballyvolane and Midleton

Berries Ballymacaw

Dunmore East, Co Waterford
€295,000
Size	53 sq m (570 sq ft)
Bedrooms	1
Bathrooms	1
BER	E1

THE BERRIES at Ballymacaw near Dunmore East stands out because it’s very pretty and also because its €295,000 asking price is more affordable than many of the properties coming on the market in this popular seaside location.

Located around 4km from Dunmore East, The Berries is a small 100-year-old stone cottage that has been extensively and attractively renovated.

“It was bought in 2015 by a UK couple who knocked some interior walls to create open-plan living space,” says auctioneer Warren Palmer.

Old-world and cute on the outside with decorative fascia board and timber lattices for climbing plants, the 570 sq ft cottage is now modern and bright on the inside.Dunmore East, Co Waterford €295,000 Size: 53 sq The long, open-plan living area has stylish grey kitchen units with a breakfast counter at one end and a sitting room with a stove and alcove units at the other. At the rear, the cottage has a bedroom and a modern bathroom.

Situated on a 1.3 acre site, The Berries has gardens at front and rear, a stone outbuilding at the side, and a long field further back.

The cottage is just a 10-minute walk from Ballymacaw Cove from where walkers can stroll along the Dunmore East Cliff Walk which runs from the cove to the village.

According to Mr Palmer, the majority of viewing requests for the The Berries are coming from downsizers keen to live by the coast.

VERDICT: A cute cottage in a popular spot.

Upper Strand, Youghal
€235,000
Size	74 sq m ( 800 sq ft)
Bedrooms	3
Bathrooms	1
BER	exempt

IT WILL require quite a bit of work to restore the Edwardian elegance of No 1 Summerhill Villas on Upper Strand in Youghal — but, given its sea views and original features it should be well worth the effort.

“The affordable €235,000 guide price could appeal to a Cork city buyer looking for a doer upper — we get a lot of enquiries from city people looking for holiday homes by the sea,” says auctioneer Melanie Clohessy of Sherry FitzGerald Hennessy.

Built in 1905, it’s a gable fronted, mid-terrace three-bed house with a double bay window at the front and high ceilings and an original fireplace on the inside.

“From the bay window at the front you have views of the sea and of Capel Island,” says Ms Clohessy, noting that the strand and the boardwalk are within a few minutes’ walk from the house while amenities in the town centre are also within easy reach.

Offering almost 800 sq ft of living space, it has a front sitting room with an ornate fireplace and a shuttered bay window with sea views. A connecting door leads from the sitting room into a dining room while a set of steps in the hallway leads down to a kitchen at the rear.

On the first floor return, there’s a bathroom and up on the first floor there are three bedrooms. Although it’s BER exempt because of its age, the house has electric heating and single glazed sash windows, so may require an energy retrofit as well as modernisation.

To the front it has a long sloping garden and to the rear, a small yard.

VERDICT: With TLC it should once again be elegant.

Ballyvolane, Cork city
€265,000
Size	112 sq m ( 1,213 sq ft)
Bedrooms	3
Bathrooms	2
BER	E1

TO increase the comfort level of their 1970s-built three-bed semi-d, the owners of 48 Meadow Park Lawn in Ballyvolane added an extension at the rear to create space for a second living room and a second bathroom.

Now offering over 1,200 sq ft of living space, the property is on the market with David Donovan of Sherry FitzGerald, who says it’s a well-maintained, well-loved family home. Guiding at €265,000, it’s within a seven-minute walk from Ballyvolane Shopping Centre.

Accommodation includes a kitchen-diner, two sitting rooms, a ground floor bathroom, as well as three bedrooms and an upstairs bathroom.

VERDICT: Offers good space for a first-time buyer.

Midleton, Co Cork
€185,000
Size	74 sq m ( 800 sq ft)
Bedrooms	2
Bathrooms	2
BER	B3

THE €185,000 guide price on 47 Copperhill in Broomfield will make the two-bed ground floor apartment very attractive to first-time buyers.

A well-cared-for, owner-occupied property with 800 sq ft of living space, it’s on the market with Kyle Kennedy of Hegarty Property who expects to see both young couples and investors at viewings.

Built in 2006 but completed in 2017, it’s a modern apartment with a B3 BER located just under 2km from the town centre.

Accommodation includes a kitchen/dining/living area with cream units, a bathroom, and two bedrooms, one en suite.

VERDICT: Well-kept and affordable.