Sherry Fitzgerald is guiding £1.35 million (€1.71m) prior to auction on May 9th next for a six-bedroom early Victorian house on one of Monkstown's secluded avenues. At 4,000 sq ft, Cron Bryn on The Hill is spacious by any standards, and four times the size of many suburban townhouses. Apart from the drawingroom, the entire house has been decorated in shades of cream and old white, providing a clear canvas for a new occupant to work with.
This smart Monkstown address tends to attract huge prices. Across the road, Lisney is guiding £2.5 million (€3.17m) for Ard Solas, a very large 5,100 sq ft house. The same agent achieved £2.025 million (€2.57m) last March for Tudor Hall, also on The Hill. Cron Bryn is a redbrick semi-detached house, set well back from the road and extremely well-maintained. Inside, original floorboards are stained nut brown and extra-wide bay windows have working shutters. The drawingroom is at the front, a large rose-painted room lined with custom-made bookcases with cupboards underneath. The fireplace is black marble inset with old green tiles.
Across the hall, there is a large family sittingroom/ diningroom overlooking the back garden. This has a simple classic-style open fireplace and French doors. No access to the garden from here however and a new owner will probably install a balcony and steps. Directly off the diningroom is a modern kitchen with cream units, black granite worktops and a black-and-white tiled floor. Upstairs, four bedrooms off a wide landing are all doubles. The walls of two children's bedrooms have been painted with fairytale and cartoon figures and one of these has an exquisite curved cast-iron fireplace. The bathroom on this floor has a Jacuzzi bath and a separate shower. The garden level has a separate courtyard and side entrance, although there are also stairs from the upper part of the house. Here, the rooms are simply styled and could have a number of uses. Stone walls have been exposed in the largest room, which would suit either a big country kitchen or family livingroom. There are two further bedrooms on this floor, a bathroom, utility room, study and a useful boot room.
Front and back gardens are a good size, lawned and with some very old tall trees. There is a rear entrance with a garage and a couple of storage sheds. The front is bounded by beech hedges on two sides, with black-painted railings and a gravel driveway. A side-gate leads to a white-washed courtyard, an entrance to the lower part of the house and the back garden.
