Country houses with potential need some work

Co Wexford/€1.6m: A Georgian house on 94 acres of land overlooking the River Slaney in Co Wexford will appeal to someone in the market for a compact country residence.

Newbridge House, Clonegal, Co Wexford is for sale through Property Partners McGuinness Lambert. An advised minimum value (AMV) of €1.6 million has been set in advance of the auction on March 10th.

Located three miles north of Bunclody, and half a mile from Kildavin and the main Carlow-Dublin Road, the 268sq m (2,885sq ft) house has been used as a holiday home for the last 10 years and is now in need of some modernisation, according to the agent.

Dating from 1892, it has nearly all of its period details intact, including sash windows, shutters, original floors and doors, cornicing and staircase.

The accommodation includes three bedrooms, two reception rooms, a kitchen, pantry, utility room and maid's bedroom with separate staircase.

The property also has disused outhouses made from cut-stone granite, which could be renovated into extra accommodation. A key selling point will be the house's extensive frontage on to the River Slaney and its tributary the River Derry.

Co Wicklow/€450,000

Someone not daunted by a renovation project could turn around a potentially lovely period house, on the market near Coolattin Woods in Co Wicklow.

AD Quinn of Gorey is quoting an advised minimum value (AMV) of €450,000 prior to auction on March 10th for Fairwood House, a former manager's residence built around 1860 by the Fitzwilliam estate. While the address is Tinahely, the house stands on two acres off the Tinahely to Shillelagh Road and overlooks Coolattin Woods. The owner, a US resident, bought the house about six years ago intending to renovate. Some ground work has been done, such as stripping back internal walls and removing unsuitable fireplaces. However, it has been empty for some years now and a new owner can expect to spend a lot of money to restore the house to a liveable state. Given the scenic location and potential of both the house and collection of stone outbuildings, this could be a worthwhile proposition.

There are five bedrooms, two doubles downstairs and three smaller rooms upstairs. Another downstairs room would make a home office and there is a sittingroom and large country kitchen. Two side extensions added on some decades ago could be knocked and replaced with something more in keeping with the original farmhouse, subject to planning.

Outside are the stone outbuildings, a rambling overgrown garden and a walled orchard.