City to Country: Cleverly renovated Dublin 8 mid-terrace or extra spacious €550,000 Tipperary home

Country grass? Or Dublin pad with architect-designed green courtyard, ponders Trish Dromey

Tue, 19 Sep, 2023 - 06:00

Trish Dromey

Portobello, Dublin 8
€545,000
Size	56 sq m (603 sq ft)
Bedrooms	2
Bathrooms	1
BER	D2

An inner courtyard with full height glass windows makes an ingeniously clever and stylish feature in this upgraded Victorian property at 17 Lennox Place, South Circular Road in Portobello.

Created when the owners employed an architect to design a kitchen and bathroom extension for the small two bed, mid-terrace property, the glazed courtyard brightens the living space and is both functional and decorative.

Listing the 56 sq metre with a guide of €545,000, Kate Mullery of Mullery O’Gara auctioneers says the house has charm as well as contemporary style while the location on a quiet street close to the banks of the Grand Canal is both convenient and central.

The front door opens into a timber floored living/ dining space which now has a full height window overlooking the gravelled courtyard at the rear. In addition to this large window the courtyard also has a door to the kitchen and another leading to a bathroom at the rear of the extension.

The small, but stylish and bright, kitchen situated alongside the courtyard has a large roof light, contemporary oak units with polished concrete worktops and a built-in breakfast counter.

The bathroom has a sunken bath and bi-folding doors opening into the courtyard and the house also has two bedrooms on the first floor.

Located within a 15 minute walk from the villages of Rathmines and Portobello and Stephens Green, the property is within easy reach of a Luas stop at Harcourt Street.

VERDICT: Who would have thought that an internal courtyard could make such a difference?

Kildalkey, Co Meath
€390,000
Size	96 sq m (1,033 sq ft)
Bedrooms	3
Bathrooms	2
BER	G

Located within an hour’s commute from the capital, Rose Cottage at Moat Town, Kildalkey in Meath is a quintessentially cute rural property with exposed beams and stonework, pretty gardens and the charm of a bygone era.

Originally a two-up, two-down Parnellite cottage dating from the turn of the last century, it was rescued and renovated at the start of this one by a furniture restorer and interior designer who sold it to its current owners in 2019.

“It’s been sympathetically restored and has an abundance of character as well up-to-date comforts including double-glazed timber sash windows,” says Celene Heffernan of Sherry Fitzgerald Royal, quoting a guide of €390,000 for the three-bed property and its half an acre of gardens.

In the rear extension, which was added during renovations, there’s a long open-plan kitchen/dining/living space which has a vaulted ceiling with exposed beams, stone and brickwork, hand-painted limestone topped kitchen units and an Aga.

In the original cottage there’s a utility/WC,a sitting room with a fireplace and a stove, a bedroom and, upstairs, a bathroom and two more bedrooms.

Ms Heffernan says that the cottage has character and history and was used to house an Air Raid Patrol Officer during the Emergency. The BER is a G and will need attention.

Outside, there are pretty cottage gardens with climbing wisteria, picket fencing and fruit trees as well as a large Steeltech shed, a timber shed, and a carport.

VERDICT: Idyllically old world and rural.

Killaha East, Co Kerry
€450,000
Size	135 sq m (1,456 sq ft)
Bedrooms	3
Bathrooms	3
BER	C2

Lime Kiln Cottage at Killaha East near Kenmare, Co Kerry, is a modern dormer bungalow with scenery and space enough to attract any buyers looking for a coastal home.

That’s the expectation of Sean Daly of Sherry Fitzgerald Daly who has listed the 2006-built three-bed property with a guide of €450,000. “It’s on a site of over an acre and a half and has views toward Kenmare Bay and the MacGillyCuddy Reeks,” he says, noting that the distance from Kenmare town is a little over 4km.

A well-kept bungalow, which has previously been used as a rental property, it has 135 sq m of living space, a C2 BER, and, significantly for those who want to work from home, it also has broadband.

At ground level there’s a living room which has a large window with mountain views, a utility room and a kitchen-diner with cream units. There’s also a guest WC and an en suite bedroom.

Upstairs there are two ensuite bedrooms with with Velux and gable windows offering views of Kenmare Bay and the McGillycuddy Reeks.

In the lawn which surrounds the property there’s a detached garage and an old stone-built limestone kiln which has given the property its name.

Noting that it’s close to amenities in Kenmare and primary schools in Kenmare and Tuosist, Mr Daly believes it will most likely sell as a permanent home.

VERDICT: A modern home is a popular coastal spot.

Ballycommon, Co Tipperary
€550,000
Size	424 sq m (4,560 sq ft)
Bedrooms	4
Bathrooms	5
BER	D1

One of the more unusual market arrivals in Tipperary this month has been that of this extra spacious architect-designed house at Urra in Ballycommon near Lough Derg.

A casualty of the financial crash, the strikingly modern house was built in 2009 but remains unfinished on the inside.

“It needs second-fix carpentry and electrics and offers a new owner a blank canvas to create a dream lakeside home,” says Gillian Wallace of Murphy Gubbins Auctioneers, joint selling agents with BOC Properties.

Occupying a 2.2-acre site, the property has 424 sq m of living space spread over three levels.

Designed to have four bedrooms, five bathrooms, three reception rooms, and a kitchen-diner, it is unfinished on the inside and requires flooring, electrics, carpentry, plumbing and heating as well as bathroom and kitchen fittings.

Although the BER is a D1, Ms Wallace says it’s been constructed to a high standard with ICF materials and has the potential to achieve an A-rated BER.