City to Country: Full of surprises D13 cottage or scenic views in rural €450k West Cork escape 

Trish Dromey looks at four homes that offer potential buyers real traditional appeal

7 Parochial Avenue at Ballydoyle, Dublin 13

Baldoyle, Dublin 13
€485,000
Size	93 sq m (1,000 sq ft)
Bedrooms	2
Bathrooms	2
BER	B3

The owners kept the cute traditional exterior of 7 Parochial Avenue at Ballydoyle, Dublin 13, gave the interior a stylish makeover, and added on a small balcony with a suspended swing underneath.

Guy Doherty of Sherry FitzGerald says that this very charming two-bed property had already been cleverly and creatively extended when the current owners bought it four years ago.

“Since then they have put in a new solid ash kitchen with Italian quartz countertops and have done a lot of redecorating,” he says, quoting a guide of €485,000.

The pretty green cottage-style door opens into a modern kitchen living space which has an exposed red-brick wall at one side and blue kitchen units with brick effect splashback and a sizable quartz-topped breakfast counter.

A similar shade of dark blue to the one chosen for the units has been used for the walls of the formal dining room at the rear, which used to be the second bedroom.

The first floor has a shower room and a bedroom alongside of which is a small balcony where the owners sit out. On a higher level there’s an attic room with fitted wardrobes and an en suite bathroom.

“It’s a charming cottage with a high-spec finish which is located within a short stroll from the coastal promenade walk to Portmarnock, Sutton and the Burrow Beach,” says Mr Doherty, noting that Sutton DART station is also within walking distance.

VERDICT: Cleverly renovated and very stylish.

Villierstown, Co Waterford
€345,000
Size	120 sq m (1,292 sq ft)
Bedrooms	2
Bathrooms	2
BER	D2

With dog kennels, a stable, a polytunnel and a paddock for a pony, Wentworth Cottage, at Ballingown West, near Villierstown, seems particularly well equipped for country living.

“It’s an attractive two bed bungalow on a two acre site which has been renovated in recent years by its current owners and is very well maintained,” says Cormac Curran of Sherry FitzGerald Reynolds.

Guiding at €345,000, the property has 120sq m of living space.

There is also a large detached garage, a mobile home which might be used as guest accommodation, and a 48sq m kennel facility used by the owners to run a dog boarding business.

Accommodation in the bungalow includes a timber-floored living room with a stove, and the kitchen dinercomes with recently installed cream units, a Belfast sink and Smeg appliances, also recently fitted.

There’s also a sun room at the rear, a bathroom and two timber floored bedrooms including one with an en suite.

Earlier this year, the owners upgraded the boiler.

In the gardens, there are lawns, a pergola, and a polytunnel for growing veg and, at a distance from the bungalow, the kennel building, a dog enclosure and a large paddock.

Wentworth Cottage is Located 2km from Villierstown, 9km from Cappoquin and 17km from Dungarvan.

“It’s peaceful and scenic and has distant views of the Blackwater River Valley,’’ says Mr Curran.

VERDICT: A home that could go to the dogs, in the best possible sense of the phrase.

Ogonnelloe, Co Clare
€585,000
Size	287 sq m (3,087 sq ft)
Bedrooms	4
Bathrooms	3
BER	B3

Aporch with three curved arches gives a slight hacienda-like appearance to this stylish detached bungalow, called Onslow, at Ogonnelloe, near Killaloe. It’s a 1990s-built four-bed property with scenic countryside views, 287 sq m of living space and one and a quarter acres of mature tree-lined gardens.

Quoting a guide of €585,000, Declan Barry, of O’Connor Murphy auctioneers, says it’s an exceptionally well designed contemporary home which includes a mooring facility located a short distance away on Lough Derg.

The spacious property’s four reception rooms include a walnut floored family room with large windows and a stove, an oak floored dining room, a marble-tiled sunroom and a carpeted TV room/home office. There’s also a kitchen/diner with a beamed ceiling and white fitted units with a Rangemaster cooker.

The home also has a bathroom and four bedrooms including two with en suites, one with a jacuzzi bath.

In recent years, the owners upgraded the energy rating to a B3 by pumping insulation into the walls, replacing the boiler and putting in double glazed windows and triple glazed patio doors. They also fitted it with an electric vehicle charging point.

Accessed by a long driveway, Onslow has mature lawned gardens with a large patio and a detached garage.

Located at Rahenamore, 7km from Killaloe and 30km from Limerick city, it could look very attractive to a Limerick city commuter.

VERDICT: Working from home in this location would be no real hardship.

Durrus, West Cork
€450,000
Size	232 sq m (2,500 sq ft)
Bedrooms	3
Bathrooms	3
BER	C3

Buyers seeking an escape from the type of intense heat experienced on the continent are among those expected to come and view this detached stone-faced property at Dromreagh near Durrus.

A scenically located three-bed house which has views of Dunmanus Bay in the distance, it was built in the 1990s as a holiday home but is now attracting interest from overseas buyers interested in permanent relocation.

“They want the West Cork lifestyle. So far I’ve booked viewings with a German and with buyers from New York and the UK,’’ reveals auctioneer Charles McCarthy who says he recently sold an island property, sight unseen, to a buyer in the Algarve who wanted to get away from the heat.

A spacious single storey property designed to resemble a traditional cottage, it has 233sq metres of living space. This includes a sitting room with a timber panelled ceiling, and a stone chimney breast with a fireplace as well as a kitchen/dining room with modern fitted units and a glazed sunroom area.

In addition to this there’s a guest WC, a bathroom, a utility room, three bedrooms, two with en suites, and a garage.

Outside there are two acres of lawned gardens with mature trees and a large terrace.

Guiding at €450,000, the property is located a little over two km from Durrus village and around 12 km from Bantry town.

VERDICT: Scenic properties in West Cork like this one may be getting even more popular.