AroundtheBlock: Is the market in Foxrock so strong that it takes a lottery to acquire a house? It seems so, given that the developers of a site on Hainault Road are asking interested parties to show the colour of their money before getting one of the nine detached houses, or one of the eight large apartments being built on the former grounds of Grove House.
Those who've shown an interest in the site have now been contacted by agents Hooke & MacDonald and invited to make offers over the reserve prices of €800,000 to €1.5 million for the apartments or €2.3 million to €3.5 million for the very large five-bedroom houses.
This rather unusual approach is all the more surprising given that the Foxrock area has had any number of large new family homes built in recent years and therefore it should be easy enough to put a fairly precise value on the Hainhault Road houses.
What's more, Hooke & MacDonald are experts on valuing new properties throughout south Dublin and are no strangers to Foxrock, where most recently they were joint agents with Gunne on the Hollybrook development of upmarket apartments on Brighton Road. The Grove House development has been a slow burner, as the two names behind the scheme, Maurice and Theresa Leahy of Silkmore Developments have been waiting since 2001 for their planning permission to come through. They originally bought Grove House on three acres for €6.3 million and initially sought permission for 46 apartments and eight terraced townhouses as well as a gatelodge on stilts. However this was turned down, and they had to settle for a scaled back scheme of houses and apartments. However, if the sales strategy works, Silkmore will do very nicely, and the delay in planning may turn out to have been a blessing in disguise.
Quiz architects and give €45 to Simon
Fancy a consultation with one of Ireland's top architects on your home improvement plans? Now's your chance, as members of the Royal Institute of Architects of Ireland (RIAI) do their bit for the Simon Community by offering their services at a cut rate. Leading firms such as A & D Wejchert, Derek Tynan Architects, Paul Keogh Architects and Grafton are among a long list of firms which are participating in an initiative between the RIAI and the Simon Community.
The architects are offering the public an hour's consultation on any building project in return for a €45 donation to Simon, less than half the normal fee.
Ninety participating architects from all over the country are giving their time free of charge on Saturday, April 16th and hope to raise at least €50,000 for the charity. Bookings have already been taken and president of the RIAI Tony Reddy advises people to book early on www.simonopendoor.ie to avoid disappointment.
During your one-hour consultation, you can expect to receive expert advice on planning, design, fees and building costs from a fully qualified architect.
Sadly, drawings cannot be provided, say the organisers, but the website provides a handy 20 questions that you could ask to get the best from your expert.
