Eight-bed coastal Colossus hits the Youghal market for €325,000

No, the headline is not missing a zero, here's a substantial seaside property with plenty character

Hillcrest House, Summerfield, Youghal, Co. Cork

Hillcrest House, Youghal
€325,000
Size	207sq m (2,238sq ft)
Bedrooms	8
Bathrooms	2
BER	E2

An eight-bed house near the beach with a €325k asking price doesn’t come up too often.

Hillcrest House in Youghal was built in 1949, so is in need of modernisation.

Would you buy it and fix it up and let it out? Team up with siblings or friends and work on a shared holiday home? Or make it a family home?

A former B&B, it was bought by the current owners’ family in 1989 and the location and size made it a popular spot.

“We had plenty of room and being near the beach too meant we had cousins over for the summer and my mum was from Sligo, so we had relatives from that side visiting too,” says the son. His mother was involved in the Red Cross and Tidy Towns and also worked in the former Hilltop Hotel in the town.

Many seasonal workers in the hotel would have stayed at Hillcrest House when it was a B&B.

There are some unusual features here, but it’s a fine house, says Will Lyons, of ERA Downey McCarthy: “As you sometimes get in coastal properties, the back garden isn’t directly adjacent to the house and is more behind and across diagonally, but it’s a lovely big house.”

Just minutes from the beachfront with its great boardwalk, there are sea views of Claycastle beach from upstairs windows.

Interest is from a mix of locals, people looking for a good-sized holiday home, and investors eyeing the Airbnb market.

VERDICT: At €40k per bedroom, this could be a bargain for the right buyer looking to create a memorable holiday home or a lucrative rental property.