A hidden gem of a house in the heart of fashionable Ranelagh needs full refurbishment but there is potential to build in the 0.7-acre garden, says Orna Mulcahy, Property Editor

Househunters are sure to be in competition with housebuilders for Glanmire, a Regency five-bedroom house on almost three-quarters of an acre in the heart of fashionable Ranelagh, Dublin 6.

Glanmire, at 22 Oakley Road, is a hidden gem of a house, set well back from the road surrounded by grounds that include a vegetable garden and an original coach-house.

With the Luas just around the corner, and the shops of Dunville Avenue close by, Glanmire should have no problem reaching its €4 million guide price when it goes to auction on June 15th.

Selling agent Keith Lowe of Douglas Newman Good says that, while there may be some development potential at the end of the garden - subject to access - the real appeal of the property is as a family home, albeit one needing complete refurbishment.

In the same family for over 50 years, Glanmire is known to a wide circle of friends in both the medical profession and in the antiques trade, since its late owners were keen collectors. The collection has now been dispersed, and the house has been emptied in preparation for sale.

It's a substantial square house that stands at the centre of the site, with good gardens front and back.

The long driveway lends a good degree of privacy though obviously the house is visible from the neighbouring buildings - on one side there is a primary school and on the other a near derelict house that has been subject to a planning battle.

There is plenty of car-parking in front of the house and at the side where double gates open into a courtyard leading to the coach-house.

Inside, the house has 451sq m (4,850sq ft) and a pleasing layout with two large rooms on either side of the wide entrance hall.

To the right is the drawingroom with its stately marble fireplace flanked by tall sash windows which look out over a rose garden at the side of the house. A wide window overlooking the front garden lets yet more light into what is the nicest room in the house.

Across the hall, the diningroom is another well proportioned room with a black marble fireplace.

The rear hallway leads to what the brochure describes as an occasional room - a long high ceilinged space that was used to store china in vast quantities.

It leads through to a large familyroom at the back of the house which has French doors to the garden and access through to the characterful kitchen. A pantry and utility room add a rambling feel to this part of the house.

Upstairs, the landing is a dramatic space with a full height leaded window and two classical columns.

Off the landing is a large bedroom and a marvellous art deco style bathroom. A narrow staircase leads to two further bedrooms in the top return.

The first floor has a wide bright landing with two large bedrooms leading off it, including the main bedroom with its highly decorative bathroom with dais style bath, and a cosy nursery.

The back garden is a delight with its lawn bounded by yew hedging and the remains of a fruit and vegetable garden that at one time fed the family with ease.

A superb original greenhouse was refurbished last year, its timber framework replaced. At the end of the garden there is a charming brick summer house, and next to it a gate onto Beechwood Park.