The break-up of Jackson Properties moved a stage further this week when the house-building company took a handsome profit on a key 11-acre development site at Finglas Road in north Dublin. Joe Kenny of Woodgreen Builders paid over £13 million for the former Premier Dairy site, giving Jackson a profit of almost £8 million within two years. Beats all the hassle of putting up a new scheme. Next month, Woodgreen will get stuck into building 338 apartments which will be largely aimed at first-time buyers. Woodgreen has been heavily involved in housebuilding in Dunshaughlin in recent years and before that, did a particularly skilful job in converting an old mill at Crossguns into apartments. With Jackson now winding down, partners Brian Cullen and his father-in-law, Jack Cosgrave, are going their separate ways after almost a decade of success at the top end of the apartment market. Cullen has bought a superb apartment site on Mount Merrion Avenue but, alas, has yet to convince the planners that he has the right model for it.

The change of ownership of the Finglas site has also meant a change in fortune for selling agents. Ross McParland will be handing over responsibility for the site to rival Hooke & MacDonald, who have had a long term business relationship with Woodgreen.