Owners Sarah, who is from the popular north Dublin suburb, and her husband, Jeff, had been on the lookout for a home in Raheny when they purchased number 10 Avondale Park, a former Dublin corporation house, in 2020. It had been sold in a probate sale, for €370,000, according to the Property Price Register, and needed complete modernisation. The owners set about creating a stylish and spacious three-bedroom home with an attic conversion to suit their busy family life.
The family moved in with relatives while their home was replumbed, rewired, insulated and extended, and triple-glazed windows were installed, bringing the property’s Ber up to B3 and its footprint up to 122sq m (1,313sq ft).
First on their wishlist was a big open-plan living space, says Sarah, and they engaged architect Alan Farrelly to design just that. The kitchen-dining-livingroom toward the back of the ground floor is a triumph and its spaciousness is a pleasant surprise, unexpected from the terraced home’s modest facade.
From the hallway you step into the kitchen area; designed by Kube, it has fresh white handleless units and marble countertops. Three hanging glass-dome light fixtures optimise the breakfast bar, and cupboards and floating shelves built into the wall make a great coffee station.
One in five people expect to pay mortgage in retirement, survey finds
Irish architectural great Ronnie Tallon built a home far superior to Mies van der Rohe’s original. Time to protect it
Sherry FitzGerald CEO Steven McKenna to leave firm to ‘explore new opportunities’
Avoiding double taxation on sale of a property abroad
In a boon for any household with multiple mouths to feed, integrated storage on the left camouflages a large freezer the size of a regular American fridge-freezer, a fridge of the same size and pantry space behind black cupboard doors, as well as a Neff double oven. There is also a handy utility space off the kitchen.
The footprint of the house was extended beyond the kitchen to incorporate the dining area, which sits under a large rectangular roof light, and the living area. There is underfloor heating here beneath the light laminate wood flooring, present throughout the ground floor. The architect proposed inserting wood panelling, in grey and white, into the negative wall space in the extension, creating an attractive design feature and adding to the feeling of space.
The living space continues outside, where there is a part-roofed terrace area past floor-to-ceiling sliding doors that constitute the entire back wall. The rest of the north-facing garden is laid in artificial lawn with a paved patio at the end of the garden.
Also on the ground floor is a good-sized livingroom to the front of the house with a teal feature wall, floating shelves on either side of the chimney breast and a wood-burning stove. A modern WC sits further down the hall with neutral sun-patterned tiles underfoot.
Upstairs the main bedroom is at the back of the house; it has built-in mirrored wardrobes with sliding doors on one wall. The main bathroom is beside that with high-gloss tiles and a full-sized bath. A second double bedroom sits to the front of the house with built-in wardrobes and shelving. A good-sized single bedroom completes the first floor.
The attic conversion is reached up another flight of stairs. Although it is used as a fourth bedroom, the ceiling height means it cannot be officially deemed as such. It has a Velux window on either side of the sloped roof and ample under-eaves storage. There is also a storage room on the landing.
The paved driveway of number 10 provides parking for two cars and has an EV (electric vehicle) charger.
There is a nice community feel in Avondale Park with remote workers walking their dogs at lunchtime and children scooting to and from school. The housing estate is just a short walk from Raheny village, which has a lovely library, shops, pubs and eateries. Raheny Dart station is less than a 10-minute walk away, bringing you into the city centre in 15 minutes. The home is also within a 15-minute drive of Dollymount Strand and Burrow Beach. Now searching for a property with an office space and an extra bedroom, Sarah and Jeff have placed this turnkey terrace on the market through Sherry FitzGerald, seeking €625,000.
