The address: 44 Pembroke Gardens, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4.

The agent: Gunne Residential.

The property: four-bedroom townhouse for €1.4 million, representing a cost of €10,769 per sq m (€1,000 per sq ft).

The look: unremarkable redbrick on the outside. Smart city pad on the inside.

The landscape: prime downtown Ballsbridge, close to the Dart at Lansdowne Road and the RDS.

The features: a 130sq m (1,400sq ft) townhouse, it has a contemporary white fitted kitchen and three of the four bedrooms are doubles. There's an en suite bathroom off the main bedroom. The livingroom /diningroom has sliding doors to a conservatory. The main bathroom has a Jacuzzi and is fully tiled. It has a 29ft rear garden and utility shed.

How much for an investor? The repayments on an 85 per cent mortgage at a buy-to-let tracker rate of 4.17 per cent APR over 25 years would be €6,343 per month. On an interest-only loan the repayments would be €4,066 per month.

How much for a residential buyer? At AIB's discounted tracker rate of 4.11 per cent APR, the repayments over 35 years would be €5,397 per month. Repayments at AIB's standard variable rate of 4.33 per cent APR would be €5,886 per month.

On a 100 per cent mortgage at AIB's one-year discounted tracker rate of 4.11 per cent over 35 years, the repayments would be €5,866 per month for the first year.

Potential: prime rental location. This property could fetch a rent of around €2,500 per month.

Verdict: the rental return doesn't come close to meeting the mortgage repayments on either an 85 per cent annuity or interest-only mortgage. Only for an investor looking for medium to long term capital gain or a residential buyer.

Calculations by AIB