Seafront house is £400,000-plus

One of the most distinctive houses on the Sandycove seafront, Ardeevin, on the corner of Sandycove Avenue West, is on the market for the first time since the early 1960s. The Victorian detached house, which has five bedrooms, will be auctioned by James Adam on November 18th when it is expected to fetch over £400,000.

This imposing house has good road frontage and two drive-in entrances. There is a narrow belt of garden running around three sides of the house, and a small green-house to one side. Directly across the road is a small public park that leads directly down to the beach. Inside, Ardeevin is an immaculately kept house, but one that is in need of updating. New owners will have to install central heating, and refurbish the cosy but old-fashioned kitchen. A recently-built granny flat extension, which has a separate entrance, could be incorporated into the main house to create a large new kitchen.

Steps lead up to the front door which opens into a lovely period hallway with its original encaustic tiled floor and solid mahogany staircase. The two principal reception rooms lead off on either side. The drawingroom, measuring 21 ft by 13 ft, is a beautiful room with windows on three sides taking in the sea views. There is a very grand marble fireplace and an elaborate ribbon and bow plaster frieze. A bay window at one end has a French door leading out to the garden, although this was boarded by the previous owner.

The diningroom on the other side of the hall is another formal room, with a very large marble fireplace and a bay window that looks out on to Sandycove Avenue West. A couple of steps lead down to the back hall, off which is a butler's pantry and the kitchen, a nice, square room warmed by a solid-fuel stove. A small scullery opens off it, and this has access to an enclosed yard, where there is a coal store and outdoor lavatory.

Upstairs, there is a charming, old-fashioned bathroom on the first landing, a separate lavatory and a double bedroom. On the next level, the first floor, is the main bedroom which faces the sea, and a second bedroom, currently used as a sittingroom. The two remaining bedrooms are at the top of the house where the landing has a window with a bird's-eye view of Dun Laoghaire. One of the bedrooms is more of a box room and could be converted into a second bathroom.

Cared for by a full-time housekeeper for over 30 years, Ardeevin is in walk-in condition.