Slash-hook rescue: Derelict Cork cottage transformed into A-rated family home

Once buried in thick overgrowth, this Ballyvourney cottage has been rebuilt as a bright, energy-efficient home with four en suites

Sat, 06 Dec, 2025 - 12:00

Catherine Shanahan

Ballyvourney, West Cork
€535,000
Size	167 sq m (1798 sq ft)
Bedrooms	4
Bathrooms	4
BER	A2

TOM’S Cottage is so crisply presented that it’s hard to believe the builder had to use a slash hook to find it when it first came to market.

“It was advertised as a site for sale which I think turned people off, but my foreman told me there was a house there. I had to get a slash hook to find it, and after we bought it, it took two months to clear out the site,” says builder Seán Healy of Lauragh Construction, a Kerry company that specialises in home and commercial renovations and new build projects.

The cottage, 1km outside the village of Ballyvourney, had seen better days when Seán bought it, but he already had a strong template, having renovated and restored similar traditional properties in Kenmare the previous year.

“We have a style when we are renovating these kinds of properties. The problem is, we can’t get enough of them,” he says. Before Tom’s Cottage, he renovated Maura’s Cottage, a lookalike property in Garranes, Kenmare, as well as a neighbouring home called John-Joe’s Cottage. The houses are named in honour of previous owners.

Among the types of properties Lauragh Construction likes to renovate are one-and-a-half or two-storey traditional farmhouses, which they gut and rebuild as models of energy efficiency, well-lit and superbly insulated. But even with modern comforts, they still retain their rural charm.

For instance, Tom’s Cottage was fitted with new triple-glazed windows that mirror the originals. “They’re exactly the same size because I wanted to retain the look,” Seán says.

The house exterior was covered in a dull grey plaster, which took “days and days to hack off”. A lean-to kitchen was knocked and replaced with a lofty rear extension housing a new open-plan kitchen/dining/living room with a vaulted ceiling.

Light streams in through double sliding doors and an overhead Velux. All of the glazing is by Munster Joinery.

“It’s all very high spec, it had to be to get the A2 energy rating,” says Seán, who adds that the cottage has “full air tightness throughout”.

He installed a heat recovery ventilation system and an air-to-water heat pump. “If you put in a heat pump without all of the rest of the stuff, you are wasting your time,” he says.

A new staircase, bathrooms and kitchen were fitted.

The exterior was freshly replastered and given a crisp white finish. It’s the polished result of an experienced builder with ongoing projects across Cork and Kerry.

Today, the once-bedraggled cottage, swallowed up in dense overgrowth, is a smartly presented traditional-style home, where each of four bedrooms (two on the ground floor) has an en suite.

An upstairs bedroom also has a large walk-in wardrobe. Downstairs, there’s a cosy lounge, as well as a utility and a guest loo.

Outdoors has been cleared, and the house is now highly visible on an elevated 1.5-acre site, with woodland and mountain views.

The renovations took eight months, and Seán is hopeful the 167 sq m property will be bought by a family.

Selling agent Ron Krueger of Engel & Völkers says the Macroom bypass has made commuting far easier for families who want a rural base but work in Cork City or Killarney.

“You’re just 30 minutes from the Bishopstown roundabout on the outskirts of Cork City, and about the same to Killarney by car,” the agent says. Macroom town is less than a 15-minute spin and Cork Airport is a 45-minute drive.

Ballyvourney is near the Mullaghanish Mountains, where you’ll find plenty of scenic trails. The River Sullane is nearby for fishing, and Macroom Golf Club is within easy reach. The guide price for Tom’s Cottage is €535,000.