Beloved by film-makers and humming with history, the rows of redbrick artisan houses in Dublin’s South Lotts have come into their own since Google’s HQ fetched up on their doorsteps and the nearby Grand Canal Dock became an architectural hotspot.
Penrose Street could not be more central to the area’s new vitality. The street’s two-storey houses were built between 1890 and 1910 by developer James Beckett to house the dockers working locally.
These days, vendor John Tyrell says, “there’s a whole young community in the street. We bought in 2009 for €300,000; today about 10 houses on the street have been refurbished.”
Number 44 was in “poor enough repair” in 2009. “We gutted it,” Tyrell explains, “until it was two walls and a front façade. We built from there.”
The result is a floor area of 81sq m (871sq ft) with an entrance lobby, open-plan living/dining/kitchen, two bedrooms, family bathroom and converted attic.
Heating is underfloor. Sherry FitzGerald is asking €425,000 for the private treaty sale.
Handmade glasswork in the front door, reflecting throughout the house, is just one of many nice decorating touches.
Black-and-white porcelain tiles in the lobby are another, so is the original fireplace in the living area, discovered and refurbished during rebuilding, and solid oak flooring.
A double-glass door from the kitchen leads to a whitewashed yard with access to a laneway.
There is an under-stair utility room and WC.
The two first-floor bedrooms have built-in wardrobes.
The family bathroom is also on this floor, with a separate shower and bath. Stairs lead to the converted attic, used both as a study and spare bedroom.
