City to country: Spend €650,000 for two beds in Dublin's Synge St or four beds in Waterford's Faithlegg

We round up a selection of choice properties from around the country

Tue, 06 Sep, 2022 - 08:43

Trish Dromey

Synge Street, Dublin 8
€650,000
Size	93 sq m (990 sq ft)
Bedrooms	3
Bathrooms	2
BER	E2

Centrally located within a 10-minute walk from St Stephen’s Green, No 67 Synge Street in Portobello is larger than you would expect and not as old as you think it might be.

Part of a small terrace of five Victorian-style redbrick properties built in the 1990s, it has a basement, a stepped front entrance with a moulded door surround, window shutters and ceiling cornicing From the front, only the triangular shape of the top floor dormer window hints at modernity.

At the entrance level of the three-storey, close to 1,000 sq ft property, there is a timber floored living room with a fireplace, ceiling cornicing and a shuttered sash window. A set of steps leads down to the basement level which has a tiled kitchen with modern grey units, a bathroom and two bedrooms.

A second set of steps in the living room leads up to an en suite bedroom on the top floor. On the stairs return, which the Victorians often used for bathrooms, the builders of this development found space for a small home office with patio doors opening onto a terrace.

The E2 BER rating needs attention but an energy upgrade will certainly be less difficult than that required by a 120-year old Victorian house.

Guiding the three-bed property at €650,000, Barry Ensor of Sherry FitzGerald Rathmines says it’s a cleverly designed, well-appointed property in a hugely popular location close to a multitude of amenities.

VERDICT: An attractive, centrally located, relatively modern Victorian-style home.

Faithlegg, Co Waterford
€650,000
Size	176 sq m (1,900 sq ft)
Bedrooms	4
Bathrooms	3
BER	C3

Many people would adore a home with sea views, but it’s probably quite safe to assume that keen golfers would much rather have one which looks on to the perfectly contoured greens of a championship course, as this bungalow at 4 The Glade in Faithlegg does.

“It’s situated on the grounds of Faithlegg House Hotel and is just across the road from the tee box on the 4th hole,’’ says Margaret Fogarty of Remax, noting that the property, situated in a row of bungalows at the perimeter of the course, is within a short walk from the clubhouse and the hotel.

Built in 2000, it’s a 1,900 sq ft property with four bedrooms, three bathrooms, two living rooms, a sunroom, a kitchen/diner and a utility room.

The largest sitting room and the largest bedroom, which is en suite, both have bay windows with views of the greens.

At the front, the bungalow has a gravelled drive and a lawned area and at the rear, enclosed by hedging, a private mature garden with a patio and flower beds.

Located 10km from Waterford city and 4km from the village of Passage East, The Glade is within a short drive from beaches at Dunmore east and Woodstown.

Quoting a guide of €650,000, Ms Fogarty says interest is coming from retirees who want to golf and returning expats as well as from local trade-up buyers with young families.

VERDICT: A dream home for a golf lover.

Transforming this property at Carrigatogher in North Tipperary from a traditional working farmhouse into a spacious five bed home took effort, two extensions, several conversions and no small amount of ingenuity.

“The cowhouse and yard have been turned into a tennis court and two stone outhouses have been converted into a games room and an office,” reveals auctioneer Eoin Dillon of REA Dillon, explaining that the property is still owned by the family who built it in the early 1900s.

Major alteration and upgrading began in the 1990s which increased the house size to more than 2,950 sq ft and turned most of the original farmhouse building into a separate one-bed apartment.

The first extension was used to add on a modern kitchen/dining room and a bedroom, and the second for a utility room and a high ceilinged living room.

“It’s now a beautiful family home with a mix of one and two storey sections and features which include traditional thick farmhouse walls, exposed ceiling trusses and numerous picture windows” says Mr Dillon, adding that the property is on a site of 1.8 acres and has attractive tree lined lawned gardens.

On the market with a guide of €650,000, the old farmhouse is located in a rural cul de sac at Dromin, 10km from Nenagh and 13km from Ballina/ Killaloe on Lough Derg.

VERDICT: The size of the house and the gardens and the fact that it has converted outbuildings and a separate apartment will give a new owner multiple options.

Clonbur, Co Galway
€525,000
Size	221 sq m (2,380 sq ft)
Bedrooms	4
Bathrooms	3
BER	B3

You could guess from its name that Drifting Leaf near Clonbur village in Galway isn’t an ordinary property — and you wouldn’t be wrong.

A strikingly contemporary residence situated between Lough Corrib and Lough Mask in the Galway Gaeltacht, it was designed by an architect with the assistance of its owners who are both artists.

Beyond the simple cottage style façade is a very stylish property which stretches to almost 2,400 sq ft and offers variety in the shape and size of its windows.

“To the rear is the sky room which has a high ceiling, three full-height angled windows and four metres of sliding doors opening on to a south-facing patio,” says Joe Moran of Moran Auctioneers, who explains that the room is used for relaxing and entertaining.

Built in 2005, Drifting Leaf has an open-plan layout which includes a generous-sized kitchen/diner with shaker-style Alderwood units. The four bedrooms include two on the ground floor, currently in use as a sitting room and an office.

One of two large en suite bedrooms upstairs has four large Velux windows on one wall.