Three-bedroom semis close to Clonee to cost from £112,000

Bookings are being taken from today for another stage of what has been the fastest selling housing development in the Dublin area in recent years. Menolly Properties has produced a new style three-bedroom semidetached house for Bramblefields 2, its latest scheme at Navan Road, Dublin 15, where the company has already built and sold 700 houses in the past 18 months. The 82 houses now being released are, like the others, close to the village of Clonee on the Dublin-Meath border.

While new house prices have been increasing rapidly all around the city, prices here have only risen by £2,000 in the past 10 months. Menolly's pricing policy has allowed it to achieve the highest volume of sales of any scheme in Dublin. The latest three-bedroom semis are priced at a modest £112,000 while nine larger versions with three reception rooms will have a price tag of £125,000.

First-time buyers have been beating a path to Clonee since Brendan Byrne of the Ross McParland agency launched the initial phase of the development, Hunter's Run, about 18 months ago. Seven hundred families have already moved into their new homes on the vast 110-acre site adjoining the Navan Road, half a mile from Clonee. When the full stretch of land is developed, there will be approximately 1,100 new houses on the outskirts of Clonee. The village has adapted well to the huge influx of residents. Old buildings have been converted into smart shops with period-style fronts and the five pubs are doing a brisk trade in Sunday lunches. A new furniture shop has stocked up with Mexican pine and plump sofas in anticipation of business from residents of the development.

Menolly Properties completed several key developments such as Eglinton Wood at Donnybrook, Orlagh Grove at Templeogue and The Maples, Clonskeagh, before concentrating on west Dublin. Less than two years into the Clonee venture, first phase - Hunters Run - has a settled look and the open-plan landscaping is maturing nicely.

When first offered for sale, the houses started at £85,000 for a three-bedroom semi. Swallow brook, a small estate of four-bedroom houses, and later developments such as Pheasant's Run and Deerhaven were sold out within weeks. Only one 1,300 sq ft four bedroom detached house is still available in the first phase of Bramblefields at £165,000.

Bramblefields 2 will introduce a fresh new house design that is likely to appeal to even the most discerning buyers. The homes have a brick and pebble-dashed elevation to the front with a tiled porch and matching hand-finished tiles giving an attractive dormer appearance. Accommodation is generous, with the smallest house measuring 1,000 sq ft. There is a guest cloakroom off the entrance hallway and a sitting room with a period-style fireplace. Connecting doors lead to a compact dining room with glass doors leading to a terrace. The kitchen is well finished with pine units and matching wall tiles.

Upstairs, there are two double bedrooms and one single, all with built-in wardrobes. The main bedroom comes with an en suite bathroom. The box room has been fitted with a space-saving platform bed with cupboards underneath and bookshelves.

The larger of the two houses at 1,150 sq ft is priced at £125,000. It has a third reception room in place of a garage and a utility room off the kitchen. A number of internal changes have been made, some of them suggestions from buyers in the earlier phases. Piped television is now available in the main bedroom as well as the reception room. There are also three telephone points around the house.

The attractive fireplace in the show-house is now standard and security lights have been added outside front and back. Instead of the usual practice of setting an allowance, the developer is providing similar tiling and painting as is available in the show-houses.

Because of the size of this Menolly site, a decision was made to break the development up into separate smaller estates, each with its own character and with varying house designs. The houses are separated at the front with hedging rather than walls and with sturdy timber fencing to the rear.

Landscaping on the site keeps pace with construction and as a result, the open spaces are already green and planted with trees and shrubs. The front gardens at Bramblefields are landscaped by the developer and rear gardens levelled and seeded.

The convenient location of this development has greatly contributed to its popularity. The N3 runs by the edge of the site and the city is half an hour's drive outside of rush hour times. With access to the M50 minutes from the site, Dublin airport, Tallaght and west Dublin are within easy reach. Blanchardstown and Liffey Valley shopping centres are both a short drive away.

A couple relocating from Malahide are among the most recent buyers in the first phase of Bramblefields and they plan to commute to work at Dublin Airport.