Starter Homes: Four properties on the market from €225k

First-time buyers can choose from homes across Lismore, Castlemartyr, Ballincollig and Cork City

5 Church Lane in Lismore

Lismore, Co Waterford
€239,000
Size	63 sq m (678 sq ft)
Bedrooms	2
Bathrooms	1
BER	D

Pretty enough to have distracted house hunters from their Christmas shopping, this two-bed, mid-terrace cottage at 5 Church Lane in Lismore attracted an immediate bid of its €239,000 guide price when it launched in mid-December.

“It’s gorgeous property which is situated right in the heart of Lismore, right under the eye of the Cathedral,” says David Reynolds of Sherry FitzGerald Reynolds explaining that it dates from the 1840s and was built as a Lismore Estate worker’s cottage.

Carefully and sympathetically renovated and extended by previous owners in the mid-2000s, it’s currently owned by a UK couple who have done some redecoration since buying in 2018.

The stone façade is charming and pretty with a gable-fronted porch, and sash-style windows with redbrick surrounds. The interior, increased to 63 sq metres, has Liscannor limestone floor slabs and some exposed redbrick walls.

An entrance hallway at the front opens into a sitting room with a full-height redbrick wall with a fireplace and a stove. A spiral staircase at the rear leads up to a galleried landing with a large Velux window.

Alongside the sitting room is a bedroom and a modern bathroom and beyond it, in an extension at the rear, a modern kitchen/diner with oak-topped units. In the converted attic at the top of the staircase, there’s a bedroom with Velux windows.

To the rear, the cottage has a long gravelled garden.

VERDICT: Is set for busy New Year viewings with retirees, young couples and holiday home buyers.

Castlemartyr, Co Cork
€235,000
Size	93 sq m
Bedrooms	3
Bathrooms	3
BER	B3

Offering decent-sized accommodation for its €235,000 guide, No 7 Elm Grove, Gort An Oir in Castlemartyr is a mid-terrace three-bed house with a B3 energy rating.

“It’s modern and very well kept with 93 sq metres of living space,” says Kyle Kennedy of Hegarty Properties pointing out that its B3 energy rating allows it to qualify it for a green mortgage.

Accommodation includes a living room, a kitchen/diner and a guest WC as well as a bathroom and three bedrooms upstairs. Overlooking a children’s play area at the front it has an enclosed south-facing back garden with pedestrian access.

VERDICT: Young couples could be pleased to discover that the furniture is included for the guide price.

Ballincollig, Co Cork
€350,000
Size	90 sq m (970 sq ft)
Bedrooms	3
Bathrooms	2
BER	B3

A well-maintained three-bed mid-terrace house with a B3 BER rating, No 10 Oak Avenue Classes Lake in Ovens could potentially make a young couple’s New Year very happy.

“The B3 BER rating means it’s eligible for a green mortgage,’’ observes Mark Gosling of Behan, Irwin & Gosling explaining that the current owners recently fitted a new gas boiler and solid fuel stove which improved the rating.

On the market with a guide of €350,000, the 2003-built house overlooks a central green area in the estate and is located around three km from Ballincollig town centre.

Offering 90 sq metres of living space it has a laminate living room with a stove as well as a kitchen/diner with pine kitchen units at ground level. The upstairs has a bathroom and three pine-floored bedrooms including one en suite.

The house has parking at the front and a landscaped south-facing garden with a steeltech shed at the rear.

“The owners recently put in a new patio in the garden and added a steel tech utility shed," says Mr Gosling, explaining that the owners are now trading up to a larger home.

Noting that the Classes Lake development is within a short drive from shops, amenities and schools in Ballincollig, Mr Gosling says the estate is especially popular with first-time buyers.

There don’t seem to have been any sales in Oak Avenue since 2022 when No 17 an end-of-terrace house sold for €297,500 and No 7, a mid-terrace house sold for €300,000.

VERDICT: An energy-efficient first step on the property ladder for a young couple.

Old Youghal Road, Cork City
€225,000
Size	64 sq m ( 690 sq ft)
Bedrooms	2
Bathrooms	1
BER	C3

Affordable with a guide of €225,000, No 8 Glen View, Old Youghal Road is a renovated two-bed end-of-terrace house located near Dillon’s Cross.

Richie Dunlea of Barry’s Auctioneers says the owners have put in a modern kitchen and bathroom and brought the BER rating to a C3.

It has a living room, a kitchen, a bathroom and two bedrooms and outside, a long back garden.

VERDICT: Located within two km from the city centre, it’s small but affordable and could make an ideal starter home