It’s highly likely viewers of 15a Claremont Road in Howth won’t take too much notice of the detached family home – not at first, anyway – because they’ll walk straight through to the long back garden, and then to the gate that opens directly out on to Burrow Beach.

The houses that line this seaside road are among the most sought after in the northside suburb. This one was built in 1991, when the owners downsized by building in the orchard of their sprawling Victorian home, which they then sold. Their children were adults by then and one son, who lives in number 15a now, remembers the lead-up to that build when the family got together to imagine, What do we really want from a house in this location?

The views straight out to sea are “something you never take for granted”, he says, as he recalls a childhood that included throwing his surfboard over the back wall and heading out to enjoy the waves. The house is elevated from the beach, he says, “so you don’t have the problem of sand blowing in” – the beach is down a few steps from the property’s back gate.

Knowing the site and how best to enjoy it meant the design included large picture windows as a feature of several rooms to the rear, all the better to enjoy the uninterrupted sea views.

The 207sq m (2,228sq ft) house sits on a 0.12 hectare (0.3 acre) plot, so as well as the sizable back garden there is off-street parking to the front for several cars. Upstairs there are four double bedrooms, one en suite, as well as a small study. Downstairs the layout is simple; on one side of the hall are interconnecting living and dining rooms, on the other an eat-in kitchen that runs from front to back. Parallel to this is a large garage with a utility room that new owners might see as an opportunity to convert to living accommodation – possibly a larger eat-in kitchen and family room. The Ber is C3.

A coastal property with direct access to a beautiful tidal beach is highly desirable in any country and Treborth, at 15a Claremont Road, is for sale through Sherry FitzGerald with a €1.495 million asking price.