House of the Week: €1.15m family home with substantial gardens in Ovens

This five-bed detached house has a massive kitchen with a vaulted ceiling and polished granite worktops

2 Beverly in Ovens has plenty extras including an EV charger, a new condenser boiler, a downstairs wet room, and a fully-floored attic

Ovens, Co Cork
€1.15m
Size	313 sq m [3369 sq ft]
Bedrooms	5
Bathrooms	3
BER	B

Beverly in Ovens is a useful snapshot of the type of housebuilding targeted at Cork’s upwardly mobile class in the 1970s. The scheme for the well-heeled, by builder Noel Parkes, offered substantial detached houses in a semi-rural setting within commuting distance of Cork city.

Most stood on generous 0.3-acre plots, gifting residents with unusually large gardens and a good degree of privacy from the neighbours.

While the world has moved on since the 1970s, Beverly’s appeal has endured for the reasons that made it attractive in the first place, but with the bonus now of proximity to the N22/Ballincollig bypass. The improved travel routes make it an easy commute for those working in the city’s western suburbs.

The current owner had her eye on No 2 Beverly for quite some time before getting the chance to buy it in 1997.

“We had been living in Ballincollig and I knew the house was coming up for sale. So we sold our own home and rented for a while,” she says. It meant they were ready to buy No 2 when it did come up.
Already a spacious home, they lived in it for 10 years before embarking on a major renovation project, when local builders Mattie Murphy and Hughie O’Connell added 400 sq ft to the kitchen.

The back wall was pushed deep into the site to create a voluminous kitchen dining room with partially vaulted ceiling. Masses of glazing were added, along one entire patio-facing wall, as well as a trio of picture windows, and two very large veluxes.

It’s a cracking space, easily able to cater for big family occasions. A Rangemaster cooker earned its keep, especially at Christmas when adult children and grandkids congregated around the substantial central island, while food was prepped on polished granite worktops, the “pride and joy” of the man of the house whose background was decorative stonework (look out for examples).

You could lose yourself at 313 sq m No 2, such is the spread of rooms. An entrance porch is really a relaxing sunroom, which leads to a wide hallway with reception rooms either side. One is an elegant confection of formal dining and relaxed family living with large windows and glazed doors overlooking the beautifully landscaped gardens; the other has a large bay window. Even with all of this space, an adjoining garage was converted and is currently a gym but with obvious home office/playroom/downstairs bedroom potential.

There are more options upstairs where you’ll find five bedrooms, one in home office use. The main bedroom is as big and luxurious as a hotel suite, with a four-piece en suite.

No 2 may be a vintage build, but it’s a fine vintage. Internal décor has a genteel New England feel, while the gardens scream “Nangles’ Nurseries”. Previous owners did the garden design and there’s much to admire: an array of outdoor living spaces, natural stone patios, manicured lawn, a charming timber gazebo, colourful planting, an ornamental pond with birdbath, all enclosed by mature growth, ergo, entirely private.

Norma Healy of Sherry FitzGerald notes other extras: outdoor lighting, an EV charger, a new condenser boiler (the house has a commendable ‘B’ energy rating), a downstairs wet room for kids, a huge, fully-floored attic. She notes too how highly regarded the Ovens setting is: “a perfect balance of countryside tranquility and convenience”. Balincollig town centre is minutes away by car and MTU and CUH are easily reached via the N22. There’s a 24 hour bus route too (the 220).

“It’s a rare opportunity to acquire a truly fantastic family home,” says the agent, who is guiding at €1.15m.

VERDICT: Beverly has stood the test of time. Still a location for the upwardly mobile.