OFFICES:DUBLIN'S GEORGIAN office sector remains one of the bright spots in an otherwise difficult commercial property market.

That is one of the reasons that agent Finnegan Menton is confident of finding a buyer for a Georgian office building at 14 Upper Fitzwilliam Street, Dublin 2, which is for sale by private treaty.

The agency is quoting €4 million for the four-storey over basement building just off Fitzwilliam Square, which is expected to appeal both to companies in search of prestigious offices and to families looking to convert one of these period buildings into a stylish family home.

The building has a net floor space of 320sq m (3,453sq ft) and a gross area of 450sq m (5,000sq ft). It has been considerably upgraded in recent years and now has computer cabling system throughout. A mews at the rear provides two car parking spaces at ground level and offices overhead linked into the main building. An attractive light-filled courtyard at the rear has been created by the L-shaped mews annex.

The office, which is being sold with vacant possession, is held in a single asset non-trading company. This will allow a purchaser to buy the company, thereby reducing the stamp duty cost to 1 per cent of the purchase price.

Nicholas Corson of Finnegan Menton says that, typically, families looking for a Georgian house to convert to residential use would look for a well-maintained building such as this one with its original joinery, plasterwork and fireplaces as well as its rear mews with car parking and private garden. “While premises fronting on to Fitzwilliam Square have the benefit of views across the square, those located just off the square often offer better value in an equally impressive location.”