Dublin 18: from €4m Four houses near the centre of Foxrock cost €4m to €5m, writes Orna Mulcahy, Property Editor
Four large detached five-bedroom houses costing between €4 million and €5 million go on sale today at Grove House, a development of nine houses and eight apartments on Hainault Road in Foxrock, Dublin 18.
The other five houses were sold off plans last year - mainly to rich young couples in their 30s and early 40s - and already the buyers have seen big capital appreciation. They bought them via a tender process for around €3 million each. Hooke & MacDonald is handling sales.
Of the four houses for sale, two have larger gardens and these are priced close to €5 million, while the showhouse, which has a smaller garden, and a second house to the rear of the development, will cost nearer to €4 million each according to selling agent David Cantwell.
They're ideal trade-up houses for those who want a big and impressive house in the very centre of Foxrock. Grove House is located off the village end of Westminster Road, within easy reach of the shops and cafés at the crossroads.
The houses are very large by any standard, with 410sq m (4,400sq ft) arranged over three floors. The three-acre site originally had just one rambling Edwardian house surrounded by magnificent trees, many of which have survived. The old house has been extended and converted to eight apartments, four of which are now for sale, priced between €1 million and €1.75 million.
Two of the houses for sale now have their own driveways on Hainault Road, while the remaining two are at the back of the site, accessed via a wide driveway that loops around in front of the houses. One of the houses at the back stands on a third of an acre of garden, backing onto woodland.
The developers are the Leahy family, who previously specialised in commercial buildings, and who have also built extensively in the south of Spain.
It's their first foray into the Dublin residential market, and according to Jackie Leahy, having lived in the area themselves, they were determined to build houses to match the best in the neighbourhood.
They've succeeded in many respects. These are genuinely impressive homes, designed with a nod to the grand Edwardian houses of the area, but with all mod cons inside. The tall double-fronted houses have red-tiled roofs, their windows and doors outlined in granite.
Solar panels promise to cut energy costs. Concrete floors throughout, with underfloor heating, create a sense of solidity that is rare in a new home. Central vacuuming is standard as is the Smarthomes central cabling system that allows for wi-fi technology, home cinema surround sound, and multi-room sound.
The landscaped grounds include a good deal of open space to compensate for the fact that not all the houses have gardens to match their size and scale.
The showhouse, which includes the contents, assembled by interior designer Colette Ward, is at the front, with a wide driveway behind electronic gates. Inside, the layout allows for a good wide hallway without taking away from the room dimensions on either side. To the left is a very good high-ceilinged drawingroom that opens through heavy sliding doors into a formal diningroom overlooking the back garden. Both rooms are luxuriously furnished with thick carpet, opulent wallpaper, carved marble fireplaces and a stellar array of downlighters overhead.
Across the hall is the family room, which has the same generous proportions, and a handsome polished parquet floor.
The diningroom opens into a vast, light-filled kitchen with the working kitchen and breakfast island at one end, and a large eating and sitting area overlooking the garden at the other.
From here there's a good view across open space to the row of houses at the back of the site. A fully-fitted utility room leading off the kitchen has access to a garage and the side of the house.
Back in the central hallway, there's a big understairs toilet with sleek mosaic-tiled walls. Upstairs, there are four bedrooms on the first floor, three of them en suite. There is also a room-sized family bathroom. The main bedroom at the front of the house is decorated in striking chocolate and pink, with a large walk-in dressingroom and a luxurious en suite.
A further flight of stairs leads to the top of the house which has one large bedroom with an en suite, as well as a spacious office under the eaves. This suite of rooms would make a great home office and playroom, though some grown ups might claim it as their bedroom.
Grove House has been a slow burner for the Leahys who bought the site in 2001 for €6.3 million and initially sought permission for 46 apartments and eight terraced townhouses as well as a gate-lodge.
They finally got permission on their third application, and residents in the area should be happy with the overall development, which, though built on a grand scale, is relatively low density, and fits in so well with the existing village scape.
