City to Country: Restored Georgian house with modern comforts or €485k waterfront home in Courtmacsherry

A selection of urban and rural finds across the Munster counties 

Finvarra, Newquay

Catherine St, Waterford city
€474,000
Size	211 sq m (2,270sq ft)
Bedrooms	4
Bathrooms	3
BER	Exempt

A RESTORED Georgian property which attractively blends period features with modern style and comforts, No 5 Catherine Street is located within a short walk from the Waterford city centre.

Comprehensively renovated in 2020 — it was previously used as offices — it’s now a four-bed house with three bathrooms and 211 sq m of living space. And like many fine Georgian houses built in the 1830s, it’s an over-basement property.

Quoting a guide of €575,000, selling agent Margaret Fogarty of REMAX auctioneers says it combines luxury and charm and offers unparalleled convenience being adjacent to the Viking Triangle and the 16-acre People’s Park and also close to shops, museums, theatres, and schools.

A stepped front entrance leads to a fanlit Georgian door and an upgraded high-ceilinged hallway. At the front is a sitting room with herringbone flooring and a fireplace and at the rear, a modern kitchen with navy blue units and a centre island. To the rear, there’s a guest WC while the basement level has a utility room and a large room which could be used as a playroom or office.

Two of the four bedrooms are located on the first floor — including one with a dressing room and an en suite. The other two in addition to a bathroom with a period-style freestanding bath can be found on the top floor.

To the rear there’s a courtyard area for parking and a patio for sitting out.

VERDICT: Spacious, elegant and very central.

Courtmacsherry, Co Cork
€485,000
Size	179 sq m (1,937 sq ft)
Bedrooms	3/4
Bathrooms	3
BER	A2

A COMPREHENSIVE energy upgrade carried out on this four-bed house at 28 Clearwater in Courtmacsherry brought the energy rating up to an enviable A2.

“Since buying the property five years ago the owners have insulated and fitted a heat pump and solar PV panels to bring the rating up from a C2,” says Con O’Neill of Sherry FitzGerald O’Neill who recently listed the detached 179sq m house with a guide of €485,000.

Situated in a mid-2000s-built development of 38 stone-fronted dormer houses which are similar in style but vary in size, No 28 is one of just a small number of properties built with a small front balcony.

“It’s an immaculately kept and stylishly presented family home,” says Mr O’Neill noting in addition to upgrading the BER the owners also put in a new kitchen.

At ground level, the property has a generous-sized, L-shaped kitchen/diner with an archway opening into a sunroom/ living room. At the front, there’s a modern timber sitting room and a playroom or fourth bedroom.

To the rear, there’s a utility room while the upstairs has a bathroom and three bedrooms including one with an en suite and a small balcony.

Outside there are sizable gardens with parking a patio and paying space.

Located around a kilometre from the waterfront in Courtmacsherry, Clearwater is around 17 km from Clonakilty.

VERDICT: There’s a lot to be said for a property that’s close to the sea in summer and energy efficient in winter.

Newquay, Co Clare
€545,000
Size	148 sq m (1, 595sq ft)
Bedrooms	4
Bathrooms	4
BER	B3

THE views of the sea, the sky, and rugged Burren hills on offer at this detached dormer house at Finvarra, Newquay, at the tip of Clare’s most northerly peninsula make it idyllic for holidays.

So says Diarmuid McMahon of Sherry FitzGerald McMahon who describes the area, where the Burren meets the sea, near the Flaggy shore which Seamus Heaney wrote a poem about — as being special.

On the market with a guide of €545,000, the property has been a holiday home since it was built 20 years ago and Mr McMahon reckons it will sell as one again now.

“Because of the views and location it could attract overseas interest,” he says, noting holiday homes in Clare are popular with Dublin buyers.

Detached and modern with 148 sq metres of accommodation, it’s on a site of close to half an acre.

Ground floor accommodation includes a living room, a kitchen/ diner with granite-topped units, as well as a utility room, a bathroom, and two bedrooms.

The upstairs has a spacious landing, a bathroom, and two front-facing en suite bedrooms with sea views.

“It’s been finished and maintained to a high standard and has a central vacuum system and a B3 BER,” says Mr McMahon.

Located within walking distance of a Martello tower on Finavarra Point, it’s 12km from both Ballyvaughan and Kinvara and a few kilometres from the Flaggy Shore and Linnane’s Lobster Bar.

VERDICT: A scenic seaside holiday retreat.

Kenmare, Co Kerry
€485,000
Size	130sq m (1,408sq ft)
Bedrooms	4
Bathrooms	3
BER	A2

THERE’S little new development going on in Kenmare so the availability of a brand-new A-rated, four-bed home for €485,000 at The Lodges, Killowen, could be welcomed by a variety of buyers.

“Some properties in the Lodges are holiday homes but most of the recent sales have been to people who want permanent homes and quite a few have been bought by retirees,” says selling agent Tadhg O’Sullivan of DNG O’Sullivan explaining that construction resumed in the 28-house development in recent years.

Since the start of this year, he’s already sold seven houses of varying sizes in The Lodges including a larger one at No 6 which went for €555,000 in March and No 2 which sold for €490,000 in February.

Recently released, No 8 The Lodges, is one of the last houses to be completed.

“It’s been built to a high spec, has an A2 energy rating and 130sq m of living space,” says Mr O’Sullivan noting that the development overlooks the Kenmare estuary and is around 1.5km from the town centre.

Accommodation at ground level includes a kitchen/ dining/ living room, a utility, a guest WC, and a sitting room. The upstairs has a bathroom and four bedrooms, one with an en suite.

“It includes kitchen units, finished bathrooms, and flooring at ground level,” says Mr O’Sullivan noting the purchaser will have to floor the stairs and the upstairs.

VERDICT: This seems to be the only new property currently available in the Kenmare area