The former Formula One racing driver, Eddie Irvine, has finally found a buyer for the extravagant Co Dublin home which he built but never lived in.
Kilross at Sorrento Road in Dalkey originally went on the market more than 12 months ago at €6.5 million, but there were no takers for the glass-walled house with its transparent floors and indoor lagoon pool.
Although it was viewed by many of the country's wealthiest business people, it languished on the market right through the year, at a time when virtually every other house for sale in the Dalkey area was snapped up.
Irvine is now understood to have agreed sales terms at around €5 million with a Dublin businessman, Mr Dave Cullen, whose interests in the property market include the Turk's Head pub in Temple Bar, the former Clontarf Baths and Seafield Golf Club in Ballymoney, Co Wexford.
Mr Cullen was not available for comment last night, and the agents who originally handled the house, Sherry FitzGerald, also said they were not in a position to comment.
Mr Irvine may be disappointed with the selling price because he spent lavishly on building and fitting out the strikingly modern 5,500 sq ft house which stands eight storeys above the road, overshadowing neighbouring houses including the home of singer Van Morrison.
There is considerable doubt as to whether the price will cover the overall investment in the house. However, Mr Irvine got the original site cheap by today's standards: he paid less than €260,000 for it in the mid-1990s when it was a simple two-bedroom cottage. Neighbours were aghast when he demolished the cottage and began to build a more monumental home.
