Glenlion, the house on 4.75 acres in Howth which Michael Lynn and his wife Bríd Murphy bought last year, is to be sold at auction next month. Fiona Tyrrellreports.
A Howth house owned by solicitor Michael Lynn is to be auctioned next month on the instructions of receiver Rory O'Ferrall of accountants Deloitte & Touche.
Mr Lynn and his wife Bríd Murphy paid over €5 million for Glenlion House, Thormanby Road, Baily, a year ago.
The Dublin-based solicitor, who hit the headlines last month when his legal practice was shut down by the Law Society, is alleged to have taken out multiple mortgages over a large number of properties and his liabilities have been estimated at up to €70 million.
The receiver, appointed by ACC Bank, has instructed Lisney to handle the sale of Glenlion, which was at the centre of High Court proceedings this week. An AMV of €4.5 million has been set in advance of the auction next month.
Glenlion House stands near the edge of Howth Head close to the Baily lighthouse on Thormanby Road - a premier Howth address running from the village to the Summit. It went to auction on June 28th, 2006 and was subsequently purchased by Mr Lynn and Ms Murphy in November. At the time of sale the house was in good structural order but with an outdated decor.
Situated on the seaward side of the road, the property is accessed via a road shared by a handful of homes.
Set on 4.75 acres, Glenlion House boasts uninterrupted views of Dublin Bay, including the nearby Baily lighthouse, and has its own private beach.
The 216sq m (2,325sq ft) house dates from the 1950s and comes to the market in a dilapidated state. Outside, two builder's skips brimming with rubble tell the tale of a remodelling project commenced but never completed.
Originally the house had three reception rooms, a kitchen, three bedrooms and two bathrooms laid out over two levels.
Now internal walls have been knocked through, ceilings have been dismantled and kitchens and bathrooms have been pulled out as part of preliminary renovations.
An adjacent chalet in a marginally better state of repair has one bedroom, a bathroom, kitchen and livingroom.
In reality it is the site itself that is the big selling point. While the site is unlikely to have development potential for a builder, high-fliers in the market for a once-off trophy home will be attracted by Glenlion's Howth address, its mature and secluded site and its fantastic sea views.
Many houses on the road have been levelled and replaced with large-scale contemporary homes, rarely under the 929sq m (10,000sq ft) mark. Riverdance duo Moya Doherty and John McColgan secured permission to build a massive house on an adjoining site.
Previous owners of Glenlion House spent much time cultivating its unusual gardens. There is an orchard, vegetable garden, ancient potting shed and sections laid out in lawn.
To one side of the house is an intriguing Roman garden complete with ivy clad columns, carved tablets and crumbling stone seating. Neglected for some time now, they look terribly eerie in swirling November fog.
Elsewhere there is a wealth of specimen plants and shrubs. Scots pines line much of the site's perimeter. There is access from the rear of the property to the cliff path.
Last week the High Court heard that Mr Lynn had taken out at least three, maybe four, mortgages on the Howth property.
Earlier this week Mr Justice Peter Kelly rejected an application by Patrick O'Reilly for Ms Murphy to treat her loan for the purchase of Glenlion House as a non-commercial mortgage. He stated that the couple were to remain in St Alban's Park, Sandymount while Glenlion underwent refurbishment.
Yesterday the Commercial Court adjourned to Monday an application by ACC Bank for a judgment of some €3.8 million against Mr Lynn and his wife arising from a loan granted for the purchase of the house. A separate application by Bank of Scotland for judgment of some €3.8 million against Ms Murphy in relation to a loan granted for the same house will also be heard on Monday.
