Expect strong competition for this classic on Ailesbury Road, says Orna Mulcahy, Property Editor

A large Victorian semi-detached house on the sunny side of Ailesbury Road is expected to fetch over €7.5 million when it is auctioned by McNally Handy & Partners on May 11th.

The five-bedroom house comes to the market in good decorative order, having been refurbished by its owner, the former auctioneer and restaurateur Peter White, a veteran of the residential investment market. Mr White bought the five-bedroom house 25 years ago with tenants in situ, and it was only with the death of the last of his tenants, one Colonel Armstrong, that he has been able to reclaim the property.

It's a substantial redbrick house with around 452sq m (4,879sq ft) of living space and a lovely old-fashioned walled garden with rear access. At one stage the Whites got planning permission to build a mews, but that permission has since lapsed.

The house is on the corner of Ailesbury Wood, a cul-de-sac development of new houses that are in keeping with their grander redbrick neighbours. The land these houses were built on was originally open ground and tennis courts that were shared by the residents of Ailesbury Road.

Number 27 is a fine house with lofty reception rooms, plenty of bedrooms and a flexible layout with no less than three kitchens and three or four reception rooms, as well as a fully fitted study. The ground floor, where a lot of renovation had to be done, is now loosely arranged as two self-contained apartments which would suit a family with teenagers, in-laws or staff. Alternatively, the house would make an ideal embassy residence, and the Hungarian government has just moved its embassy residence next door.

The house dates from the late 19th century and has many of its original features intact, including stately marble fireplaces and excellent cornicework both in the hallway and the main interconnecting reception rooms. Also off the hall is a small fully fitted office that overlooks the entrance to Ailesbury Wood.

The Whites opted to locate the kitchen at hall level and it occupies a long, rather dark room that overlooks the back garden. Downstairs at ground level the layout is divided with a large apartment to the front of the house - which has a good-sized kitchen of its own - and the one-bedroom staff flat, also with kitchen, to the rear of the house.

Upstairs, the bedrooms are on three different levels, and all come with smart en suite bathrooms. Decor is simple if uninspiring - cream walls, cream carpets and wispy muslin curtains that are purely for effect. The two upper floors have a traditional feel while at garden level white ceramic flag flooring, underfloor heating and recessed lights dispel any sense of basement gloom.

There are some sophisticated touches, like the central vacuuming system and of course the entrance gates are electronically controlled. However, it's likely that new owners will spend a good deal more putting their own stamp on the property, as estate agents like to say. The market seems to be extremely strong just now for big expensive redbricks and one agent specialising in off-market sales says that he has half a dozen buyers waiting for the right house to come up on Ailesbury Road. If that's the case then number 27 could make a good deal over its guide on auction day.

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