Size will be a major selling point in a new scheme of extra-spacious three-bedroom semis and two-bedroom apartments launching this weekend at Celbridge, Co Kildare. Simmonstown Manor is a development of 51 houses and 40 apartments being built on a 10.8 acre site on Temple Mill Road close to the village centre. Prices start at £139,950 for the apartments and go up to £219,950 for 1,600 sq ft houses - pricey, but among the largest threebedroom semis on the market this season.

There are no box rooms here. All the bedrooms at Simmonstown Manor can fit a double bed, though this will be a squeeze in the smallest room. It's a refreshing change from new housing schemes where four bedrooms are often shoehorned into the same square-footage.

Joint agents Hooke & MacDonald and Coonan New Homes expect the bulk of buyers to be locals taking the opportunity to trade up from smaller semis in the area. For sale this weekend are 11 1,600 sq ft three-bedroom semis with studies and family rooms priced from £219,950 and four smaller three-bedroom semis of 1,230 sq ft starting at £172,500. Eight apartments, in the first two of a total of five two-storey blocks, are priced from £139,950.

To get to the site, proceed straight ahead at the approach to Celbridge from the Dublin side without going over the bridge - a notorious bottlekneck which is avoided by living on this side of the village. Simmonstown Manor is a short distance on the left, going towards Ardclough. Brick and old stone boundary walls and entrance pillars create a mature look and there is an abundance of green space around the estate.

The completion date for the first phase of houses is from January onwards and the apartments will be ready for occupation by next spring. The entire scheme will be finished by the end of next year.

Builder, Comac Ireland Limited, has previously built housing developments at Clonsilla and Navan, Co Meath. Brick-faced to the front and with deep porches, the Simmonstown Manor houses are laid out in three cul-de-sacs and flanked at the front and side by communal lawns. A boundary wall separates the estate from adjoining farmland.

The larger 1,600 sq ft threebedroom semis, priced from £219,950, are double-fronted and benefit from wider front and rear gardens. A study which could double as a fourth bedroom is off one side of the hallway. Opposite this is a good-sized sittingroom with a Victorian-style timber and tile fireplace and a box bay window. Double doors lead to the diningroom and through further doors to a bright sunroom/family room which has a wall of timber windows and a large Velux window in the ceiling.

Another door opens from here to the kitchen/breakfastroom, which is spacious and well-fitted with oak units. A utility room off the kitchen has built-in cupboards and a door to the side passageway. The lavatory is tucked under the stairwell. Upstairs, the three double bedrooms are off a well-lit landing.

All the Simmonstown houses have fitted wardrobes as standard and the main room has a well proportioned en suite shower room. The family bathroom is also larger than usual and the airing cupboard off the landing is a walk-in style. The 1,230 sq ft three-bedroom semis priced from £172,500 are similar in design to the larger houses and have sunrooms, but no study or utility.

The apartments are not yet completed and are for sale from plans. Ground floor units will have patios and west-facing balconies will be standard with apartments on the first floor. They come in two sizes, 720 sq ft and 775 sq ft and cost from £139,950.

Apartment layout includes a combined sitting and diningroom with the kitchen off. The larger units will have an en suite shower room off the main bedroom and a utility room - useful for storage.

A tennis court is planned in the landscaped communal gardens, which sweep around the side of the houses and the five apartment blocks. The open areas will be taken in charge and a management company will be formed to look after the apartments. Celbridge is 13 miles from the city on a good road network, which will be further improved with a planned new link to the M4. The Arrow train service operates from Hazelhatch station and there is a regular bus service to Dublin.

Showhouses will be on view this Saturday and Sunday between 2.00 p.m. and 4.00 p.m.