Live like a king in the Royal county

The royal county, once the seat of Ireland’s high king, is noted for its rich rolling lands, period piles and stud farms – it is also one of the capital’s key commuter counties with many of its residents working in the greater Dublin area.

The population of Co Meath is now 194,942, the highest it has been since before the Famine and has increased 16 per cent since 2006. Its growth rate makes it the seventh most populated area in the country.

While house prices are on the rise, it is better value than within the city limits. According to MyHome.ie’s most recent property report, for the first three months of 2017 the average asking price for a property in Meath was €230,000 (up 4.55 per cent year-on-year). The average price for a three-bed semi is €195,000 while the median for a four-bed semi is €249,000. Only Dublin, Wicklow and Kildare are more expensive.

Houses here sell fast. The average time for a property to go sale agreed is just under four months within its prime commuter-belt communities.

Navan, the county’s administrative capital, is situated where the rivers Blackwater and Boyne meet and with a population of about 31,000 it is one of the top 10 largest towns in the country. Second-hand three-bed semis here in a decent location cost around €200,000, while new A-rated properties are priced around €250,000, explains John B Harrington of Smith Harrington who says you can expect a journey time commute to Dublin at rush hour of 75 minutes.

And you are buying into a car culture. For now there is no train service, although a provision to extend the Dunboyne line is in the offing but may take another 10 years to materialise: “They’ve been talking about it since God was a child”, Ed Reilly, managing director of SherryFitzGerald Reilly says. For now a slew of buses, both Bus Éireann and private operators offer express and local services to the capital.

Fifteen to 20 per cent of buyers here are from Dublin, says Pádraig Sherry of SherryFitzGerald Sherry who believes the best places to buy are on the Dublin side of the town. Johnston, Athlumney Abbey, Athlumney Castle and Cairnwood have all held well.

Demand far outstrips supply, a sentiment echoed by all agents interviewed, with the selling time in Navan just six-eight weeks.

Broadband is a big issue though, says Reilly. “It is one of the first questions buyers ask especially when viewing country properties.”

The county is home to one of Ireland’s three Unesco world heritage sites at Brú na Bóinne and Newgrange, about 38km from the pretty heritage town of Trim, a two-times Tidy Towns winner that is also set on the banks of the Boyne. Here tourism accounts for about 20 per cent of all employment, according to Aidan Heffernan of SherryFitzGerald Royal. Amenities include hot-air ballooning with world record holder Pauline Baker, golf at Knightsbrook, a Christy O’Connor Jnr-designed course, and ring walks along the river Boyne. With three hotels and several restaurants, the town sees itself as a gourmet capital.

The park-and-ride facility at Dunboyne is one of the reasons this village is on buyers' radar.

“In terms of new estates, a lot of development land around Trim was dezoned in the last development plan in 2014 but there is planning for 350 houses granted at Efferknock on the Dublin Road,” Heffernan says.

Village atmosphere

The fact that Dunsaughlin had no sewage facilities or a bypass meant it got left behind during the boom but that saved the town from overdevelopment, Sherry notes. “Now bypassed and the sewage works upgraded, the town, with a population of almost 4,800 still has a village feel.” He estimates there are about 100 new homes for sale here.

Prices range from €300,000-€325,000 for a three-bed semi, €350,000- €365,000 for a four-bed semi. And more can be expected as Castlethorn Construction and Kingscroft Homes both own lands here. The market for second-hand homes lags behind these prices and returning emigrants, those who left in 2008, make up 11 per cent of Sherry’s buyer database. Car commute time to Dublin is 45 minutes at rush hour.

Dunboyne, Ratoath and Ashbourne are all strong-selling towns and home to workers commuting to Dublin with prices about €80,000-€100,000 higher than those in Navan, Harrington says.

The park-and-ride facility at Dunboyne is one of the reasons this village is on buyers’ radar. Trains can deliver commuters to Dublin’s Connolly Station or Spencer Dock in around 45 minutes. With a population of 11,200, it recently welcomed a branch of lifestyle store Avoca and a garden centre by Howbert and Mays. With Facebook and Shire Pharmaceuticals investing in nearby Clonee, setting up house here means “buying into a lifestyle that includes hanging out at Avoca, visiting Tayto Park or fly fishing at Rathbeggan Lakes,” Sherry says.

East Meath has some of the best connectivity in the county with a direct train service from Drogheda to Dublin as well as slower trains servicing the towns of Gormanston and Laytown.

Stock is an issue throughout the county. Drogheda has retained its place as the biggest town in Ireland with a population of 41,000, according to 2016 census figures, Donal Brady of DNG Brady says of the town that straddles Co Meath and Co Louth. Here 50 per cent of the buyers are from Dublin, says Giles Belton of SherryFitzGerald Lennon because “prices haven’t jumped to the same levels as in the capital”. Two-bedroom apartments are €120,000-€150,000.

Commuter town

Ashbourne has really blossomed as a commuter town since the new town centre was built about 12 years ago, says Celine Geraghty of SherryFitzGerald Geraghty. Notable independent shops include Chez Emily, a chocolate boutique in town and New Barn Farm, a farm shop, open farm and Donkey Shed restaurant just outside the town that showcases some of the county’s finest market-garden produce.

Its oldest estates date back 40 years with second-hand prices typically between €170,000 and €200,000 for a two-bedroom apartment. A three-bedroom semi is in the region of €250,000-€270,000. Notable areas include Alderbrook, where a four-bedroom detached house with a big garden is currently asking €420,000 through SherryFitzGerald Geraghty. One-off houses in Beltrasna are also very desirable with prices starting from €500,000.

While Meath may have morphed into a commuter county it still offers a real chance to participate in country life, says Philip Guckian, manager at SherryFitzGerald’s country homes, farms and estates division. Its steeplechase heritage is first class with the greatest of them all, Arkle, born at Ballymacoll Stud and immortalised in bronze on Ashbourne’s Frederick Street.

“If you’re looking for privacy, star-lit skies overhead and land on which to keep ponies you can buy a very good family home on 25-30 acres for €850,000- €975,000. You’re getting a lot for your money, including a slice of country life, compared to what’s on offer in Dublin,” Guckian says, noting that Dublin airport is just a 25-minute drive while travel time to Dublin city centre is 75 minutes.

Bargain hunters should be looking to rural north Meath, the only part of the county to show very little population growth but the gain you make in lower house prices has to be weighed up against the additional travel time.