Co Kildare/€3.75m: A large period house on 21 acres has everything an equestrian enthusiast could need, says Kate McMorrow.
Whitechurch House and Stud at Straffan, Co Kildare seems to have everything on hand for a buyer interested in an equestrian career.
Standing on 21 acres of level grounds, this five-bedroom Georgian property includes paddocks and an extensive stable yard with 14 loose boxes, a tack room and feed sheds. Joint agents Lisney and Coonan are guiding €3.75 million before auction on October 13th for Whitechurch House, which has been meticulously restored to a very high standard.
A semi-circular Norman Pratt conservatory - air conditioned and with underfloor heating - opens out to a picturesque rose garden.
Through electronic gates, the beech-lined main avenue curves round to a gravelled forecourt. The house is white-painted, with shutters and elegant multi-paned windows. An Adam-style marble chimneypiece is centre stage in the drawingroom, which has French doors opening to the rose garden.
There is also a morning room with period fireplace and doors to the garden. The family room has a fine chimneypiece with reeded brass grate and slate hearth. Extending into a bay window, the formal diningroom includes ceiling cornicing and downlighters over the dining table.
SieMatic units in the kitchen / breakfastroom are topped with polished granite, with an island unit, Gaggeneau oven and second oven, microwave included. A door leads to the walk-in pantry. The downstairs guest toilet is marble floored and there is a utility room with Belfast sink.
A fine staircase sweeps up to the first floor gallery landing, where the spacious main bedroom opens to a dressingroom and full en suite bathroom. Also at this level are a study and bedroom two, with extensive wardrobes and en suite shower room.
Three further good-sized bedrooms include wardrobes and a tiny box room provides useful storage. The family bathroom has a bath and ultra-modern granite-tiled shower unit.
Outside, the stable yard has its own driveway to and from the Straffan Road and good car-parking space. Formal gardens of an acre surrounding the house are divided into a walled garden, rose garden and lawns, all with an abundance of well-clipped shrubs, hedging and herbaceous borders. Railed paddocks make up the balance of the land.
