Show apartments are opening for the first time this weekend at the Grattan Hall scheme off Malahide Road, not far from Donaghmede Shopping Centre, in Dublin 13. Selling prices for two-bedroom units range from £155,000 to £200,000. Penthouses with sea views cost from £274,950. Ross McParland is the agent handling sales.
The development is located on a seven-acre site on Hole-in-the-Wall Road. Next door is Manor Park's previous development, Grattan Lodge - worth a look to see the high standard of finish on one of its completed schemes.
This quiet back road is inland from Baldoyle and almost completely rural in aspect. Malahide village and Portmarnock are both about three miles away.
Of the 176 apartments in Grattan Hall, 30 will be on offer in this phase, distributed among four three-storey blocks. Three of the units for sale are top-floor penthouses.
The apartments are in 10 redbrick blocks arranged around cobbled parking bays, with mature landscaping. The upper floors, with views of Lambay, Ireland's Eye and Howth Head, dictate a slightly higher price and Portmarnock sand dunes and the sea are clearly visible from the penthouse balconies.
The smallest units of 625 sq ft cost £155,000, going up to £200,000 for very roomy 865 sq ft accommodation. They have a walk-in finish, with fitted wardrobes, standard wall tiling and a classic-style fireplace with coal-effect fire. Oak flooring is laid in the penthouse units and kitchens here include a dazzling array of built-in electrical equipment.
A typical smaller two-bedroom apartment has an open-plan sittingroom, dining nook and kitchen. Large corner windows and adjoining French doors to a sit-out balcony will make these units a popular choice.
Another window in the dining area allows light to the neat maple kitchen. Two double bedrooms have builtin wardrobes and the main bathroom has standard white wall-tiling with a blue border. The penthouses measure from 1,030 sq ft to 1,060 sq ft and cost from £274,950. High angled ceilings and big windows recessed into the roofline give a bright and airy impression. The floors throughout are oak, apart from limestone flags in the kitchen.
Glass-panelled double doors open from the hall into the sittingroom. There is a fireplace and doors to a timber-lined balcony, which also opens off the kitchen. This is a separate room, and includes oven, hob, dishwasher, microwave, washer/dryer and a US-style Liebherr fridge. Down a long hallway, the two bedrooms are both double, with enough space in the en suite main bedroom for a king-sized bed and a couple of easy chairs. The en suite off the main bedroom has a full double shower.
