New Homes: The lure of lots of space – and a leisure centre too

The Ballymore Group loves to innovate and has been making a splash in east London with its upscale high-rise developments complete with talking-point extras like the "swimming pool in the sky", designed as a bridge between two blocks in its 2,000-apartment Embassy Gardens development. Social media had a field day with this design schtick that could only have helped the second phase launch of that development last Monday.

Back in Ireland Ballymore's aspirations with its Pipers Hill scheme are equally ambitious. There is a pool involved but what Sean Mulryan, chairman of Ballymore, wants is to attract city dwellers out to Kildare using spacious homes as bait. Piper's Hill has been designed to appeal to the Dublin set, agent Jill Fogarty of Savills explains. "We wanted it to be attractive to Dublin-based families who had bought apartments and were looking to move up the ladder as well as local first-time buyers."

A-rated houses

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Will they lure Dublin buyers? The A-rated houses are situated beside Killashee House, on the outskirts of Naas, Co Kildare.

The first phase launched five weeks ago and 38 of the 40 three- and four-bedroom homes are now sold.

Phase two, The Brook, is a scheme of 20 homes comprising 14 four-bedroom and two five-bed detached properties, and two three-bedroom and two four-bedroom semis.

The house styles offer a lot of growing room to expanding families.

The three-bed semi, 124sq m (1,338sq ft), is asking €325,000; the four-bed semi, 162sq m (1,744sq ft), is asking €365,000; the four-bedroom detached, 211sq m (2,280sq ft), is asking €475,000 and the larger four-bedroom detached, 240sq m (2,592sq ft), is asking €545,000 while the five-bed detached, 251sq m (2,710sq ft), is asking €565,000.

Each style has a large open-plan kitchen, by Tipperary-based Savvy Kitchens, living/diningroom with a separate sittingroom with open fire. The four- and five-bed detached homes also have a separate study.

Efficient heating

In each property an air to water heat pump system provides domestic hot water and efficient heating. All have photovoltaic solar panels.

Each house has a landscaped garden, patio and proper dividing walls rather than fences. With commuting in mind each property comes with two parking spaces. Buying here also gives householders access to a 25m pool, separate children’s pool, steam rooms, Jacuzzis and saunas, the facilities of the leisure centre and spa at nearby Killashee, part of a free three-year family membership being offered to the new home buyers.

Will it be enough to lure All Ireland-winning true Blues on a 50-minute spin out to Kildare to join the Lilywhites? Only time will tell.