D4 home has large plot of land

A fairly ordinary four-bedroom house at 79 Sandymount Avenue in Dublin 4 that goes to auction through Sherry FitzGerald on March 15th has one extraordinary feature - a large plot of land at the end of its 100 ft garden which could be developed for extra housing.

The 10,000 sq ft plot, which is surrounded by tall trees, is nearly a perfect square, with access from both Sandymount Avenue and Gilford Court. Housebuilders with plans to build one or two more houses here will almost certainly be among the bidders, so the sale price could be well beyond the guide of £800,000 (€1.016m). Selling agent Simon Ensor is suggesting that the site has potential development opportunity for a small townhouse development or a very large house subject to the necessary planning permission.

The detached house is a typical example of a 1930s suburban home. It has four bedrooms upstairs, three doubles and one single. Downstairs, there are three rooms, two reception rooms which interconnect via sliding doors and a third room which presumably was the kitchen when the house was built. This is the most interesting room in the house in that it still has its green and pink terrazzo floor and, most unusually, a layer of terrazzo on the walls.

It is currently used as a diningroom as there is a kitchen in the extension to the side of the house. At the back of this kitchen is a small, mostly glazed, extension which was probably used as a small potting shed or back porch.

Aside from the terrazzo, most of the house's original 1930s features are still intact including elaborate wood and tile fireplaces in the reception rooms and two of the bedrooms. The curved bays to the front give extra space to the bedroom and front room. The hall is wide and square and has a window on the stairs.

The improvements that have been made will almost certainly not survive the house's renovation as they include aluminium windows and the very basic kitchen. The house needs a great deal of modernisation including heating, a new kitchen and a bathroom. However, there is certainly room out the back for a fine kitchen extension as there is a 100 ft garden, which is divided into two sections by a hedge.

It is hard to tell at this time of the year but the garden does seem to have some mature trees and plants. The long garden means that the house should not be greatly overlooked by whatever building happens on the site at the back. There is off-street parking to the front.