Blackrock four-bed in convenient to UCD

Modern housing developments in south county Dublin, such as Fosterbrook, tend to be on the luxurious side and though expensive to buy into are enduringly popular. New to the market this week, 6 Fosterbrook, Blackrock, is a four-bedroom detached house in tip-top condition.

Sherry FitzGerald is seeking offers of £497,500 in a private treaty sale. The price reflects the strong performance of previous sales. Christies achieved £414,000 for a four-bedroom semi at Fosterbrook last spring - about four times the price of these houses when first built.

Convenience is a big plus, with UCD's Belfield campus across the main road and the Radisson and Montrose hotels close by. Fosterbrook, built about seven years ago, is located just off the Stillorgan Road and close to the Montrose Hotel. Since the houses were built the gardens have matured nicely although the deciduous wood which borders the scheme provided a ready-made leafy environment from day one.

Number 6 is one of three detached houses with an all-brick frontage. Inside it has 1,690 sq ft of living space. The owner is a keen gardener and has maximised one of the few shortcomings of this popular estate fairly tight garden space. Variegated ivy climbs over the front porch and well-chosen evergreens, including some unusual specimens, provide good winter colour.

Inside, soft creams and neutral paint colours are used throughout the house to pleasing effect. The polished maple entrance hall has a guest toilet. Two main reception rooms are interconnected by white double doors. The diningroom to the front looks out on the boundary wood. To the rear, the sittingroom has a white marble fireplace and glass sliding doors to a patio crammed with greenery.

On the other side of the hall is a study/television room with space for a couple of easy chairs. When the house was being built, the owners arranged to extend the kitchen and add a couple of small Velux windows, creating a room large enough for a decent-sized table. There are black and white floor tiles, white walls, a good range of white-painted units and a utility room off.

The bedrooms are also good-sized - the smallest room could fit a double bed and three of the four rooms have wardrobes. The main bedroom to the front has a range of smart cream wardrobes and an en suite shower room. Sensibly large, the family bathroom has elegant black, grey and white tiles and gold-plated fittings.

Outside, the back garden has been beautifully landscaped. The lawn is terraced with timber railway sleepers and planted extensively for privacy and all-year-round colour. There is a magnificent "wedding-cake tree", Cornus, a berried Cotoneaster tree and climbers covering walls, fences and a timber shed. A flagged terrace accessed from the sittingroom and kitchen catches the afternoon sun.