CLONTARF €3.6M:AN UPSIDE Of the boom was that there were developers, usually small scale ones, willing to take on large period properties that had been lying idle and falling into disrepair and restore them to a standard far exceeding their former glory.
Three years ago, the couple who bought 27 and 28 Castle Avenue in Clontarf took on a major renovation project when they bought the pair of dilapidated semi-detached three-storey Victorian houses. The houses are listed as protected structures which brings its own challenges – and considerable expense – but both are now reclaimed as superb family homes.
Number 27 went on the market in May 2008 at €4.5 million and sold earlier this year and now number 28 is for sale through the same agent, Conor Gallagher at Douglas Newman Good who is quoting €3.6 million – a figure that reflects the price level achieved by its neighbour.
What was an already large house has been extended by the addition of a modern, cedar wood clad extension at the back so that the four-bedroom, four reception room house now stretches over 372sq m (4,000sq ft). In addition there is a one-bedroom, very pretty looking guest cottage at the end of the back garden.
The owners who, through experience know what buyers at this end of the market want, have ticked all the boxes.
As well as providing all modern conveniences, from underfloor heating to designer bathroom fittings, they’ve kept the original proportions and reinstated many period features, not the easiest task in a house once divided into bedsits.
(One of the more famous tenants was Phil Lynott who is said to have written many of Thin Lizzy’s greatest hits here.) Up the granite steps at hall level are two fine interconnecting reception rooms with sliding doors. The front room has dual aspect, an unusual feature in these type of houses.
At the back of the house, in the new return (created by the extension) there is a double bedroom with a large en suite shower room and extensive built-in wardrobes. Upstairs there are three more double bedrooms, one of which is en suite, and a good-sized family bathroom.
One of the most attractive features of the top floor of the house is the reinstated conservatory. These plant rooms were a feature of Victorian houses and they’ve done a lovely job on this one with its mosaic-tiled floor and doubleglazed timber windows.
The garden level, with its own door at the side, is where a family is likely to spend most time and it’s the roomiest part of this house. There’s a livingroom to the front which connects to a smaller room which could be a playroom or TV room and this opens into the very large, bright eat-in kitchen.
The hand-painted, traditional style timber units are topped with stone and as well as extensive storage along the wall there is a large stone-topped island – the flooring is oak, as it is in other parts of the house.
The kitchen was custom made for the space as were the units in the adjacent utility room. A cold room or wine cellar is under the stairs and there is a guest cloakroom and plenty of storage throughout.
The back wall is mostly made up of glazed floor-to-ceiling doors and these open out onto a timber deck and then to the landscaped back garden.
There is off-street parking to the front for at least three cars.
28 Castle Ave, Clontarf, D3
Renovated Victorian four-bed has conservatory, cottage
Agent:Douglas Newman Good
