Property giant Hibernia Reit recently announced its results for the latest financial year, returning profits of €124 million. It was a good year too for the company's chief executive, Kevin Nowlan, as suggested by his recent purchase of a 410sq m (4,413sq ft) pile in Killiney for €2.275 million.
Saintbury House on Saintbury Avenue, the one-time home of actress Maureen O’Sullivan, hit the market in 2016 and took 2½ years to sell, with Nowlan and his wife eventually picking it up for about 23 per cent less than its initial €2.95 million asking price, in spite of significant overall price increases in Dublin’s residential market in the interim.
The house occupies a prime hillside site of about 0.25 hectares (0.62 acres) with uninterrupted views across Killiney Bay. Nowlan, who lives in a large refurbished house in nearby Sandycove, has plans to partially demolish existing structures on the site in order to create a very sizeable 514sq m (5,532sq ft) home complete with gym, sauna and wine room. No objections to Nowlan’s plans were lodged with planning authorities by neighbours.
![Kevin Nowlan, Hibernia Reit’s chief executive, bought the 410sq m (4,413sq ft) house in Killiney for €2.275 million. Photograph: Tom Honan](https://www.irishtimes.com/resizer/v2/LNFVOYRNNMXGUHU7776N7GH3NM.jpg?auth=ce991316ce6abca5776944b06536b3e7354758ed3e1d7e794ad302f99e142f87&width=800&height=450)
The sale is yet further evidence of the extreme divergence between Dublin’s higher-end homes, many of which are languishing on the market for years, and the rest of the residential market, which has experienced exponential price rises.
Nearby Nowlan’s new home, a Victorian home named Ulverton on Dalkey’s Ulverton Road sold for €2.8 million after 12 months on the market, representing an 11 per cent reduction. Elsewhere in Dublin, 29 Temple Road in Dartry sold for €4.8 million one year after hitting the market for €5.75 million (17 per cent reduction). 17 Temple Gardens in Rathmines sold for €3.5 million, a year after its vendors marketed it for sale at €4.5 million (22 per cent reduction). Around the corner, Hadleigh, 42E Palmerston Road, took a 19 per cent drop from its €3.25 million asking price, selling for €2.65 million nearly three years after it was first marketed for sale.
It seems there is value to be had in the market after all – if you’re a multi-millionaire that is.