City to Country: Upgraded Dublin 3 mid-terrace home or ultra spacious Dungarvan escape for €695,000

Home choices from urban to rural with Trish Dromey

Loughmore near Templemore

Marino, Dublin 3
€625,000
Size	99 sq m ( 1,065 sq ft)
Bedrooms	3
Bathrooms	1
BER	C3

Thanks to the renovation works carried out by previous owners there doesn’t seem to be a lot that purchasers of 18 Fairview Green, Marino, Dublin 3 will need to do.

Selling agent Sean Tobin of Sherry FitzGerald Clontarf sold the three-bed mid terrace house to the current owners in 2023 after it had been extended and upgraded by the family who bought it 15 years earlier.

“It’s a stylish and modern home with upgraded windows and insulation and a C3 BER ’’ says Mr Tobin quoting a guide of €625,000.

Overlooking a central green area at the front it’s a 1920s built brick fronted property located within a 15/20 minute walk from Clontarf Dart station and seafront.

At the front there’s a timber floored sitting room with a large triple glazed window, a cast-iron fireplace painted yellow as well as alcove shelving. Beyond this there’s a sitting room with a stove with an archway opening into a kitchen extension with two skylight windows, patio doors and white fitted units with timber countertops.

The upstairs has three bedrooms including two with slide robes and one used as a home office and an upgraded bathroom.

The garden at the rear has also been given a makeover by the previous owners who built a timber clad out building for use as a home office, put down a patio and added timber railing for privacy.

VERDICT: Being close to Clontarf and in ready to move into condition, it’s unlikely to lack viewers.

Templemore, Co Tipperary
€595,000
Size	254 sq m ( 2,734 sq ft)
Bedrooms	5/6
Bathrooms	4
BER	A2

When this five-bed detached house at Loughmore near Templemore was being built in 2017, its engineer owner went all out to make it high tech and high spec.

“It has a Mitsubishi heat pump with underfloor heating, an Aereco demand controlled ventilation system, Alclad windows and a 2kw PV system which helped it achieve an A2 BER,’’ reveals Eamon J Ryan of Sherry FitzGerald Gleeson quoting a guide of €595,000 for the 254 sq metre property and its 0.8 acre site.

Interior features include a stylish glass railed staircase and a contemporary kitchen while the high tech ones include a sound system, time controlled garden lights and an external camera system. In the gardens the owner also built a block built garage with a gym.

A modern timber floored sitting room at the front opens into a generous sized kitchen/diner with white contemporary units, a long grey island unit and a double sided stove. An archway at the rear connects it to a sunroom.

The ground level also has a utility room, a guest WC, an en suite bedroom and a home office. Upstairs there’s a bathroom and four bedrooms including one with an en suite and a walk in wardrobe.

Located six km from Templemore and nine from Thurles, it is expected to attract trade up buyers from both towns. “Equipped with high speed broadband, it would be ideal for ideal home or hybrid working,’’ says Mr Ryan.

VERDICT: Energy efficient and spacious enough to provide a high level of comfort.

Dungarvan, West Waterford
€695,000
Size	353 sq m (3,800 sq ft)
Bedrooms	4
Bathrooms	5
BER	B1

A €100,000 New Year price drop on this ultra-spacious four-bed home at Garryduff, Colligan near Dungarvan might prompt a buyer to consider relocating to the West Waterford countryside.

Now offered with an AMV of €695,000, the 353 sq metre property and its one acre site are set to be auctioned on the iamsold online auction on January 23. Auctioneer Denise Radley says it’s a luxurious and stylish family home built by its current owner in 2005 and upgraded in recent years.

“They fitted Alu-clad triple glazed windows and replaced the boiler which brought the BER up to a B1,” she reveals.

The property’s extra spacious accommodation includes a timber floored sitting/dining room/ sunroom with steps leading up to a modern well-equipped kitchen with cream and grey units and a breakfast island. There is a spacious timber floored living room with a stove, a home office and a smaller living room as well as a utility room and a pantry located at the rear of the kitchen.

A curved timber staircase overhung by a chandelier leads to the first floor which has a bathroom and four en-suite bedrooms including one particularly large one which has a walk-in closet as well as an en-suite with a bath and a shower.

Outside there’s a 245 sq ft garage and a steeltech shed as well as extensive lawned gardens and a Liscannor stone clad entrance with black wrought iron electric gates.

VERDICT: Offers amount of space that might seem unimaginable to some city dwellers

Kinvara, Co Galway
€675,000
Size	150 sq m (1,614 sq ft)
Bedrooms	4/5
Bathrooms	4
BER	A2

In the seaside village of Kinvara, 30 km from Galway city, trade-up buyers are now being offered an opportunity to buy the second last house in a modern A-rated development at Rinn Na Mara.

One of just three detached houses out of 27, No 2 is a spacious contemporary four-bed property with 150 sq metres of living space and an A2 BER.

Priced at €675,000, it’s on the market with Brian MacMahon of DNG MacMahon who says it’s been built to a high standard.

Accommodation includes an open plan kitchen/diner, a spacious living area with a contemporary fireplace, a utility room, a guest WC and a ground floor room which could be an extra bedroom or a home office depending on the needs of the purchaser.

Upstairs there’s a bathroom and four bedrooms including two with en suites and walk-in wardrobes. Mr Mac Mahon says this is a high-spec property which has been well-finished inside and out. “In the gardens, there's a cobble lock drive, a patio, a shed and an EV charging point,’’ he reveals.

While Kinvara is popular with tourists, Mr MacMahon says that all the purchasers in Rinn na Mara so far have been owner-occupiers from Galway City. It’s close enough to appeal to commuters and is also ideal for people planning to work from home, he adds. O’Donnellan & Joyce are joint selling agents.

VERDICT: A contemporary, energy-efficient home located within a ten-minute walk from the coast.