Castleknock/€3.5m: A comfortable family home built over 30 years ago has a large lush garden with a tennis court. Kate McMorrow reports
Few addresses north of the Liffey have a following to equal that of the Georgian Village, a secluded estate of large neo-Georgian houses in Castleknock, Dublin 15.
The houses were built in the 1970s and over 30 years on, have attained near celebrity status with buyers. Gardens half an acre and over are well-matured and as verdant as anything Foxrock has to offer. Cherry trees lining the avenues are still in flower and front gardens are bursting at the seams with evergreens, colourful climbers and giant flowering shrubs.
As one of the first residents to move into the Georgian Village, the owners of number 12 were in a position to buy one of the largest plots on the estate. Now with the family reared, they're downsizing to a penthouse along the road, leaving the way clear for a younger family to build new memories.
Joe Beirne of Sherry FitzGerald Lewis Beirne is quoting a private treaty price of €3.5 million for this five-bedroom house, which comes with a beautiful 0.7 acre garden and all-weather tennis court. The gardens are a real feature of this property, totally private and lushly planted.
Through the postbox red front door, first impressions are of a warm family home with none of the stark minimalism of many on-view houses. The main rooms of the house open off a large inner hall, where an oak staircase climbs to the bedroom area. The downstairs toilet has old-fashioned gold-plated taps and green flowery tiles.
To the left off the hall is a bright triple aspect sittingroom with a marble and brass mantelpiece which came from a country house in Limerick. Soft green colours predominate, echoing the gardens which are on view on three sides. A French door opens to a south-westerly terrace.
Through another doorway is the formal diningroom with two windows facing the tennis court. A black cat purring on one of the dining chairs is sadly not part of the sale. This room links with an oak kitchen/breakfastroom with lattice-windowed glass cupboards and a family dining area, opening in turn to a side courtyard and the garage.
Across the hall is a cosy family den for watching TV. Off the upstairs landing are four good double bedrooms, one single room/study and two bathrooms, one an en suite.
All have at least two sash windows, letting in plenty of light.
Bedroom one has crisp white walls and linen, a bank of white-painted wardrobes, walk-through dressing area and en suite shower room with a smart curved shower and tiled vanity unit. Wash-hand basins are fitted in all of the other rooms. Bedroom two is a big double with a long vanity unit and washhand basin.
Another double room in blue and lemon has a distinctly Provençal look, while a lavender blue back bedroom looks out on the back lawn. The smallest bedroom is used as a study. Sprigged tiles maintain the old-world theme in the family bathroom, which is brought up-to-the-minute with a chrome ladder towel rail and new bath screen.
Above is a huge attic accessed via a pull-down ladder, which could be converted to more bedrooms or a home office if necessary. Even on a rainy day, the gardens have a certain magic, with giant cedar, pine, maple and birch providing total screening on all sides.
Rhododendron and tall ferns have created nooks and crannies for hide and seek, while roses, clematis and honeysuckle scramble up walls and over hedges. Stepping stones cross the lawn to a well-maintained tennis court which hosted many inter-family tournaments when the children were small.
