Starter Homes: Upgraded 19th century home in St Luke’s for €310,000

Selection of homes for first-time buyers to consider in Saleen, St Luke's and Evergreen Street

Cahill Ville on Alexandra Road in Cork's St Luke's.

St Luke’s, Cork
€310,000
Size	80 sq m ( 861 sq ft)
Bedrooms	2
Bathrooms	1
BER	C3

You couldn’t guess from the pebble-dashed exterior of this 19th-century two-bed mid-terrace house at 9 Cahill Ville, near St Luke’s Cross, just how changed it is on the inside.

Extended and renovated by previous owners in 2013, before being redecorated again by the current residents, it’s much larger and more modern than you might expect.

Describing it as a light-filled property with a cleverly-designed extension and an upgraded C3 BER, Karl O’Reilly of Savills quotes a guide of €310,000.

Ideal as a first home, it now has 861 sq ft of living space and an attractively-tiered gravel garden at the rear with a steel tech shed used as a home office.

The front door provides access to a small hallway which opens into a living room with a solid-fuel stove, painted rafters, a section of exposed stone, and a staircase.

A step up at the rear takes you into a modern kitchen/diner with white high gloss units with a breakfast counter, a vaulted ceiling with skylights and triple-glazed patio doors.

Off the kitchen, there’s also a modern bathroom.

The first floor has two bedrooms — one at the back and one at the front with views across the city.

To the rear, enclosed by high hedges there’s a long-tiered gravel garden with a patio, plants, a herb garden, and a home office.

Located off Alexandra Road, Cahill Ville is within a 15-minute walk of Cork City centre.

VERDICT: A cleverly enhanced city pad. 

Saleen, Co Cork
€290,000
Size	117 sq m (1,259 sq ft)
Bedrooms	3
Bathrooms	3
BER	B3

WITH the addition of a recently-built extension, No 16 Cois Coillte at Saleen near Midleton offers pretty good space for a three-bed semi with a guide of €290,000.

“The owners increased the size to 1,259 sq ft in 2017 when they add a family room and a utility room at the rear,” says Clare Fox of Sherry FitzGerald O’Donovan, noting that they also brought the building energy rating in the 2005-built home up to a B3. They did a lot of work too in the garden.

Accommodation includes a front living room with alcove units and a stove set in a limestone fireplace.

An archway with sliding doors connects this room to a modern kitchen diner with cream shaker-style units at the rear. Off the hallway there’s a guest WC and, in the extension, there’s a family room with patio doors as well as a small utility room.

The first floor has a bathroom and three carpeted bedrooms — two doubles and a single — including one en suite.

Situated on a corner site, the property has a good-sized garden which includes off street parking at the front.

The two-level garden at the rear has a section outside the kitchen with artificial grass and a limestone patio as well as a triangular area which is accessed by a set of steps. “This has decking and lawn and is planted with hydrangea, daisies, foxgloves and red robin hedging” says Ms Fox.

Located a short walk from Saleen primary school, the property is 6km from Midleton.

“It’s in superb condition and is a little over a five-minute drive from the town centre,” she says.

VERDICT: Could look very attractive to a first-time buyer or to someone looking to upsize from an apartment or a smaller house.

Evergreen St, Cork city
€200,000
Size	56 sq m ( 600 sq ft)
Bedrooms	2
Bathrooms	1
BER	E1

THIS small two-bed end-of-terrace cottage at 5 Coyle Square on Evergreen St could attract interest from parents with offspring set to attend UCC in the Autumn.

It’s in a quiet pedestrian cul de sac just an eight-minute walk from the college,’’ says Terry Hayes of Barry auctioneers, noting that it’s the type of property that parents often shop for at this time of year.

Listed with a guide of €200,000, it’s been upgraded with double glazing and modern kitchen units, has an E1 BER and is said to be in good condition.

VERDICT: Key to investors and first-time buyers.

Evergreen St, Cork city
€285,000
Size	75 sq m (807 sq ft)
Bedrooms	3
Bathrooms	1
BER	E1

AFTER being on the market for just two days, this end of terrace three-bed house at No 84 Evergreen Street secured a bid of its €285,000 guide.

AML Properties says the 2000-built house has been attracting good viewings from young couples. “It’s been lovingly renovated by the current owners who put in a new kitchen and flooring, new decking and upgraded the bathroom,” says auctioneer Aine McLoughlin.

Offering 807 sq ft of accommodation it has a sitting room and a kitchen at ground level and three bedrooms and a bathroom upstairs.

Attractions besides its condition include the location within a five minute walk from the city centre.

VERDICT: Attractive renovation, central location.