Glorious gardens and Panoramic vista at €895,000 Glounthaune home

A quarter century of careful planting has left the gardens of 42 The Highlands in immaculate shape

42 The Highlands, Glounthaune

Glounthaune, Co Cork
€895,000
Size	233sq m (2,508sq ft)
Bedrooms	5
Bathrooms	3
BER	B1

The couple who bought No 42 The Highlands 25 years ago had hoped to build their own home but shifted their thinking after coming across this Glounthaune property.

“The view is what sold it to us,” the owner says and it’s easy to see what he means as the house is on a hillside overlooking the River Lee as it broadens into an estuary on its course to Cork Harbour.

It’s got a niche spot within The development too, tucked up at the back of a cul-de-sac, next to mature woodland.

While the owner didn’t get to build his own home, he did get to indulge his construction/engineering skills at No 42 where he deftly re-arranged the layout.

“The kitchen was dark when we bought the house so soon after we came in, we started working on it, removing the wall between the kitchen and dining room, installing bigger windows and proper patio doors.”

He opened up a gable wall to install a large picture window and introduced feature redbrick supports beneath the open arch between kitchen and dining area. It’s an ideal setting for entertaining, as a river-facing sitting room also links into this space.

Outdoors trumps though, when it comes to a natural setting for having guests over. To the rear, patios are spread over two tiers. A covered-in seating nook is sheltered from the elements. Floral displays, skilful planting, and an abundance of trees and shrubbery add vibrancy, texture, and colour. The woman of the house had green fingers, and the 0.39a gardens are the wonderful legacy of a quarter of a century of thoughtful planting.

Paul Fenton of Sherry FitzGerald is selling the five-bed, 2,500sq ft detached property in this low density, upmarket estate, dotted with bespoke homes, some recently remodelled or rebuilt. It’s generously proportioned, he says, with two decent reception rooms, a playroom/gym, a home office, a utility and three bathrooms — as well as the spacious kitchen/ dining space. The B1 energy rating is a big plus too, with several improvements made such as an upgraded heating system, walls pumped, attic insulated, 14 solar panels installed — all keeping utility bills to a minimum.

Mr Fenton says the location is tops — above Glounthaune village, close to shops, schools , the Jack Lynch Tunnel, and a short drive to Cork city centre.

VERDICT: Handsomely sited family home with lots to admire, inside and out.