City to Country: €425k West Cork escape or cosy Kimmage lodge in well sought-after location

That this prettily renovated two-bed 1930s bungalow at 152 Kimmage Road West in Kimmage goes by the name of Cosy Lodge only adds to its attraction.

Graham Gaughran of DNG Terenure says the extended and upgraded property has a C3 BER and definitely lives up to its name.

“It’s charming and picturesque and, with an attic conversion, now has 124 sq m of living space,’’ he says, explaining most of the work was done by previous owners although the current ones have done some redecoration since buying it eight years ago.

Original features include a curved bay window and a high ceiling in the front sitting room with coving, picture rails and pine flooring. Newer additions to the room include a cast iron fireplace with a gas fire and a set of sliding doors which opens into an open-plan family room/kitchen/diner at the rear. 

The family room has a fireplace with a stove and the kitchen extension has shaker-style units and Velux windows.

There’s a refurbished bathroom and two pine floored bedrooms at ground level and an attic room, used as a bedroom, as well as a shower room on the upper level.

“It’s in a sought-after South Dublin location and is within easy reach of the villages of Kimmage, Terenure and Templeogue,’’ says Mr Gaughran.

VERDICT: Who could fail to appreciate the charms of a ‘Cosy Lodge’?

Spacious and detached with two acres of tree lined paddock and a converted stable, this four-bed property at Laught, near Lisnagry, is described by selling agent Sherry FitzGerald Limerick as being more of a lifestyle choice than a residence.

Quoting a guide of €599,000, auctioneer Brenda Mulcahy says the late 1990s built house, located 12km from Limerick city and 4km from Anacotty Business Park is the perfect rural haven for a trading up family.

“The mature beech hedging and tree-lined borders provide a natural shield from the outside world,” she says, noting that despite its rusticity the property is within easy commuting distance of schools and amenities.

Offering 219 sq m of living space, it was designed with certain period property features including a Georgian style fanlight entrance. At ground level there are two reception rooms, sunroom, kitchen, utility room and guest WC as well as an en suite study which could be a bedroom.

Upstairs are four bedrooms including three en suites. Outside there’s a 45 sq metre converted stable which now houses a home office, gym and WC.

Accessed by a long, tree-lined driveway, the house has a large gravelled patio area at the rear. At both the front and the rear, there are long expanses of railed paddock offering plenty of space for ponies.

VERDICT: Attractive, spacious and rural but just a 15-minute drive from Limerick city.

“It was built by the owners in 2008 and is very well-finished and maintained, has 167 sq m of accommodation and is on a site of three quarters of an acre,’’ says Denise Radley of Radley Auctioneers who recently listed it with a guide of €389,000.

Accommodation includes an L-shaped large kitchen/diner/sunroom with cream units and a stove as well as a sitting room and a utility room. There’s also a bathroom and three bedrooms including one en suite. Overhead it has a 58 sq m floored attic which might be converted.

Fitted with solar panels to heat the water, as well as double-glazing and oil- fired heating, the bungalow has a B3 BER. In the gardens there’s a large gravel driveway, a decked patio and a 55 sq m garage which new owners might want to turn into an office.

Located a little less than five km from Lismore, the property is around eight from Cappoquin village.

“It’s just a 25-minute drive from Dungarvan and a 60-minute one from Waterford City,” says Ms Radley, noting that Clonmel is within a 36 km drive.

She says interest is coming from trade-up buyers in the locality and also from returning emigrants looking for a family home in the Lismore area.

VERDICT: Perfect for a buyer thinking of swapping city life for rural tranquillity.

Owing to the accidental replacement of an ‘E’ with a ‘K’, this attractive stone faced property at Gorteanish in Ahakista has an Eircode address of ‘Pink Vista’ rather than ‘Pine Vista’.

Given the three-bed dormer property looks out onto woodland with pine trees at the front, Pine Vista makes a lot more sense. Selling agent Liam Hodnett of Hodnett Forde auctioneers says it also offers distant sea views - which would be better still if a new owner were to cut back overgrown shrubbery.

Built in the early 1990s, it’s 210 sq m property with a C3 BER. While a well-kept, owner-occupied home, Mr Hodnett says décor is dated and the house will require redecoration and upgrading.

At the front there’s a dining room with a large bay window and, on either side of the window, there are French doors, one set into to a spacious kitchen/diner, while the other opens into a sitting room with stone fireplace and a stove.

At the rear there’s a utility room and a guest WC while the first floor has a bathroom and three bedrooms, one en suite.

With a guide of €425,000, Pine Vista and its half an acre of gardens is within a 10 minute walk of the pier, beach and two pubs in Ahakista.

VERDICT: This part of West Cork is popular with celebrities, relocators and holiday home hunters.