Co Dublin: €4m A secluded Victorian house close to Dalkey village has been transformed into a comfortable family home with subtle hints of the new world. Eoin Lyons reports

Househunters seeking a big family home in the village of Dalkey will be interested in the sale of Monterosa, a large villa-style house on Sorrento Road, within striking distance of Finnegans pub and the main street.

Sherry FitzGerald expects bids over €4 million for the four-bedroom house, which has views of the sea from its top floor windows. It is scheduled for auction on November 9th.

Hidden behind a bank of trees so that it is barely noticeable from the road, it's a house that has seen a good deal of refurbishment in recent years.

The owners have transformed what was a relatively undistinguished Victorian house into an altogether more interesting home with many many architectural charms, such as high ceilings and well-proportioned rooms, with the added dash of a pale blue-green exterior and white wraparound veranda.

Subtle hallmarks of the New England style such as these could look out of place in Dublin, but because this is Dalkey and with the sea close by, it couldn't have been a more apt style from which to draw.

There are Victorian details too, of course, such as a large airy conservatory off the kitchen which overlooks the country-style garden.

The house has a pedestrian entrance on one side of the property and vehicular access on the other. An iron gate with a spider motif and pebbled path with wood inserts lead the way to the front door.

Inside, the entrance hall looks through to a large inner hall with an open staircase. To the front there is a small livingroom and a large diningroom-cum-study that opens onto the tiled veranda. Soft shades run from room to room. There are timber floorboards throughout the house.

There are views looking either towards the sea over the rooftops of Dalkey, or towards Killiney and Dalkey hill at the rear.

At the back of the house is a large family room and down a few steps to the garden level, the bright kitchen and conservatory. Good storage is the key to keeping a home tidy and off the kitchen are practical solutions in the form of a pantry, large towel cupboard, utility room and area to hang coats. Elsewhere, there is an abundance of built-in presses.

There are two double bedrooms and a family bathroom downstairs and upstairs, a large bedroom that is a dream den for a teenager, with several roof windows and an en suite shower room.

The main bedroom is on the top floor of the house and has a sloped glass wall on one side of its vaulted ceiling with views over Dalkey and Dublin Bay. It has a sitting area that can be separated from the bedroom proper by sliding wooden doors and a walk-in wardrobe that leads to an en suite.

Outside, the garden is divided into three areas: a lawn, stone terrace and space at the front.

Great space and clean architecture characterise the house, creating a breezy, comfortable home. Remove the current owners' possessions and what you have is a perfect pre-primed canvas for a new family.