City to Country: Attractive Victorian-era cottage in Glasnevin or charming €225k West Cork farmhouse

Tasty choices around the provinces, writes Trish Dromey

126 Botanic Road Glasnevin

Glasnevin, Dublin 9
€550,000
Size	168 sq m (1,808 sq ft)
Bedrooms	2
Bathrooms	2
BER	D1

With the addition of a converted attic, No 126 Botanic Road in Glasnevin is now particularly spacious for a villa style red brick Victorian mid terrace cottage.

Listing it with a guide of €550,000, John Sullivan of Ray Cooke auctioneers says the two-bed property now has 168 sq metres of accommodation including an extension at the rear as well as an attic conversion.

The work was carried out over time by the owners who have had it for many years , he adds, noting that the 1890s built house has some original features and has been very well maintained.

In the original part of the cottage at the front there's a long timber floored sitting room with a bay window and a fireplace while the extension created space for living area with a skylight as well as a kitchen/diner with fitted units and a stove. There’s also a WC / utility while the first floor has a bedroom with a large bathroom with a corner bath. 

Up on the top floor the house has a spacious bedroom with Velux windows and also a storage area. To the rear there’s a patio garden with a pedestrian gate.

“The location on Botanic Road in the heart of Glasnevin is excellent – it’s close to amenities in Drumcondra and Phibsborough as well as Glasnevin and is within walking distance of the Botanic Gardens, Griffith Park and Croke Park,” says Mr Sullivan.

Cappaghbeg, West Cork
€225,000
Size	90 sq m (968 sq ft)
Bedrooms	2
Bathrooms	1
BER	F

A buyer looking to experience a West Cork lifestyle without splashing out on an expensive coastal property might be interested in this old stone farmhouse at Cappaghbeg near Ballydehob which has a rather modest €225,000 guide price.

A two-bed cottage on a site of an acre, it’s located eight km north west of Ballydehob and is within a 20 minute drive from Durrus, Schull and Skibbereen.

Auctioneer Pat Maguire says the property is charming and characterful having been renovated and extended around 20 years ago by UK buyers with Irish connections who made it their permanent home.

Traditional style accommodation on offer includes a slate floored sitting room with a stone chimney breast and a inglenook fireplace with a stove. To let in the light the owners took away part of the ceiling above the room which now has four windows and is overlooked by a mezzanine area.

To the rear is a narrow lean to style kitchen with a Stanley stove, a Belfast sink, painted timber units and sloping ceiling with exposed beams. The ground floor also has a bathroom and a bedroom with an open tread ladder stairs leading up to an overhead bedroom.

In the gardens the owners have converted a metal roofed stone out building into a living room/ study with a vaulted ceiling and a stove. Mr Maguire says the large gardens with mature trees and shrubs are an added attraction.

VERDICT: The farmhouse needs modernisation and an energy upgrade but is charming and affordable

Kinvara, Co Galway
€495,000
Size	140 sq m ( 1,506 sq ft)
Bedrooms	4
Bathrooms	3
BER	C2

Located just half an hour’s drive from Galway city, this detached four bed- house at 4 Burren Dale in the seaside village of Kinvara, is the type of property which could look attractive to both trade up buyers and downsizers.

So says Brian McMahon of DNG McMahon who has just listed the 2005-built three storey property with a guide of €495,000. Situated in a tiny development of five stone fronted detached houses, it’s within a few minutes’ walk from village amenities and shops.

Offering 140 sq metres of modern living space, it has a timber floored living room with an insert stove as well as a spacious tiled kitchen/diner with grey granite topped kitchen units and a breakfast counter. 

To the rear, there’s a utility room and a WC while the first floor has a bathroom and three bedrooms including an en suite. The fourth bedroom, a spacious room with Velux windows, is on the top floor. Outside there are gardens with a patio and a steel shed at the rear and parking at the front.

The properties in Burren Dale are very rare to the market, although this one was bought earlier in the year by buyers who are now relocating.

Mr Mc McMahon says that being on the Wild Atlantic Way, in an area famous for traditional Irish music, the property could also make an ideal holiday home. Located around 28 km from Galway city it’s close to the border with Clare and is within easy driving distance of the Burren.

VERDICT: A modern family home within a few minutes’ walk from the coast.

Dunmore East, Co Waterford
€475,000
Size	129 sq m ( 1,388 sq ft)
Bedrooms	4
Bathrooms	1
BER	C1

Retirees in search of a seaside home could be very happy with 4 Pine Hill, Coxtown in Dunmore East – a four-bed single storey property which has been designed to resemble an old style cottage.

“It’s a very charming rustic style bungalow with red brick window features, and exposed timber beams on the ceiling,’’ says auctioneer Margaret Fogarty of Remax auctioneers explaining that both redbrick and ceiling beams are salvaged material.. Quoting a guide of €475,000, she says that despite its old world features, the property was built in the 1990s and has a C3 BER.

Offering 129 sq metres of living space, the bungalow is divided into two wings which are connected by a central hallway. On one side, there's an open plan split level kitchen/living/dining space with timber beams, some rough plaster walls, a stove and a kitchen area with white units and redbrick walls. There’s also a utility room and a bathroom with an old style slipper bath while the other wing has four bedrooms.

Lawned at the front, the property has a large low maintenance garden area at the rear which backs on to woodland. Located within a ten minute walk from the Dunmore East cliff top walk, it’s just a few minutes’ drive from village amenities and Dunmore Strand.

VERDICT: A quaint and attractive property in a popular coastal location.