When the owners of number 8 Fairview Strand bought the mid-terrace redbrick it had an F Ber rating. They purchased it in late 2015, paying €270,000 for it, its price having already dropped by €25,000.
Back then it was described as a three-bed property but the formal diningroom, one of two ground-floor reception rooms, was being used as accommodation.
The owners, one a carpenter by trade, got stuck in and opened up the ground floor turning the original two rooms into one space, laying laminate flooring in a dark chocolate shade throughout and adding insulation to the walls and ceilings, improving the energy rating to a much more respectable C1.
New uPVC double-glazed windows were installed, designed to a template by the carpenter that followed the gentle arch of the frame’s surrounding brickwork.
To the rear they opened up the existing rooms, a kitchen and a bathroom, to install a smart handle-less kitchen. The design, purchased in Noyeks, has Prussian blue units and timber countertops with double doors opening out to a decked yard to the rear. This faces due south, is a decent size and relatively private and is unlikely to become overlooked as the properties to the rear have already all been extended.
Hived off this area is a utility with its own window for ventilation, a luxury in a property of this size. The house measures 90sq m (968sq ft).
There is storage built under the stairs and adjacent is a small internal guest toilet with a sliding door.
The family bathroom, which has a large shower stall, is on the return. The property’s two bedrooms are on the first floor. The main is to the front and spans the width of the house and has a wall of storage featuring black wardrobes and matching banks of pull-out drawers.
The couple had been planning to convert the attic, to add a dormer window to the back to avail of the sunny aspect and Fairview Park views visible at that level and this could still be done subject to planning permission and additional funds.
The pair welcomed their first child last year and the young family is now looking for a bit more space and hoping to trade up to a property in Clontarf.
The house is seeking €434,950, through agent Castle Wilson Moore.
