Kerry farm offers an 'affordable opportunity' at €5,900/acre
The traditional farmhouse on the property is in need of total renovation or of knocking and rebuilding but its existence is a strong asset in this era of a housing shortage.
Following the shortage of land on the market in Kerry over the last year, there seems to be something of a minor surge at the moment. A 44-acre holding at Thoor, near Portmagee on the Iveragh Peninsula has just come on the market with Tralee-based Property Partners Daly Ó Sé.
“It’s a grassland farm with a derelict house on it and it’s about halfway between Cahersiveen and Waterville,” said selling agent Darragh Ó Sé.
“The land has been rented over the last number of years, so it hasn’t been used that much – it’s used for grazing and it can be improved.”
According to the agents, the land is quite good for the area and a certain amount of work from the next owner in terms of drainage and land improvement works would be of enormous benefit in bringing the property up to its full potential.
Logic would dictate that a reasonably sizeable land parcel like this would attract the interest of a local farmer rather than one from further afield and this is also the opinion of the selling agents.
“I would imagine that it will be a local buyer that will buy it,” Ó Sé said, “but then again, there’s potential there for someone coming from outside the area. With the lack of properties coming on the market of late, it might very well get outside interest as well.
“There’s demand for land in the area and the fact that there’s a house on it means that you can build a home on it... It just means that planning isn’t an issue there, which is a big thing because planning is very sensitive in this area.”
The traditional farmhouse on the property is in need of total renovation or of knocking and rebuilding but its existence is a strong asset in this era of a housing shortage – particularly in such a sought-after area in one of Ireland’s premier tourist zones.
Despite the property’s size, there isn’t any plan – contingency or otherwise – to split the farm into two lots. It’s not conducive to such an operation in any case, with access at one point where the public road joins a private lane entrance. There are no entitlements going with the land, which is laid out in easily managed divisions.
“For someone buying it for farming, it’s the kind of land that could do with some drainage and re-seeding,” Mr Ó Sé added. “And if you were to buy it for the house, then you’d also need to do plenty of work on the property.”
The holding is priced accordingly, however, and as such, it represents a very good opportunity in this part of the world where such opportunities are rare. The reaction from the market – even at this early stage – seems to confirm this sentiment.
“It’s been very interesting so far,” Mr Ó Sé said. “It’s only gone up in the last couple of days and we’ve had about six enquiries on it. We haven’t had an offer yet, but we’ve had some good interest from a few of them.”
The asking price is €260,000. At €5,900 per acre, this is an affordable opportunity in an area that can offer multiple opportunities in the areas of farming and tourism – the two main industries in this beautiful part of the world.
