Until 2007, number 17 Leeson Street Upper, like many of its neighbouring houses on the fine terrace close to the canal, was carved up into flats. A considerable and costly renovation brought the three-storey-over-basement house back to single family use but, by the time it came on the market in late 2013, it was a receiver’s sale and it had become a rental.

The couple who bought then are now moving on – to a smaller house – having found that the four-bed 304sq m (3,272sq ft) property is simply too big for their needs.

They have enjoyed the convenience to St Stephen’s Green and the undeniable grandeur of the mid-19th century property, but it’s a lot of house for two people. They have since added herringbone parquet in the reception rooms and in their bedroom on the top floor, new tiles in the hall and concertina doors down at basement level to replace the patio doors.

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Cornice-work

The grandest room isn’t at hall level where there are two interconnecting reception rooms; instead it’s upstairs to the front. Its elaborate ceiling cornice-work, black marble chimneypiece and the higher ceiling all indicate that this fine room with its two sash windows overlooking the street was originally the principal reception room. It’s now a sparsely furnished bedroom with ensuite. The second bedroom is to the rear on this floor and at the top of the house are two more bedrooms, the one with an ensuite to the front used as the master bedroom because it is dual-aspect, having two round-head windows in the gable wall.

Number 17 was originally the end of the terrace but early in its life a curious one-room-deep Regency-style stucco-finished house, number 17A, fronting onto Dartmouth Road was added on.

Glossy stone

Down in the open-plan basement the kitchen is to the front and the living area to the rear, and glossy stone floor tiles help to reflect the light.

The northwest-facing elevated 9-metre-long garden is designed for low maintenance with a raised seating area and Astroturf patch. It’s a busy stretch of Leeson Street and the owners usually park around the corner.

The most recent sale on the terrace was late last year when number 15 changed hands for €1.65 million; needing complete restoration and renovation, it had the benefit of a mews site.

Hunters is the selling agent for number 17 Leeson Street Upper, seeking €1.75 million.