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Will renovated Glengarriff church capitalise on west Cork village’s run of high-profile sales?

Former Church of Ireland property seeking €895,000 is the latest to hit the market aimed at those seeking a west Cork bolthole

The Church, Glengarriff, Co Cork
The Church, Glengarriff, Co Cork
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Address: The Church, Glengarriff, Co Cork
Price: €895,000
Agent: Sherry FitzGerald O'Neill West Cork
View this property on MyHome.ie

The sale of Glengarriff Castle, a half-restored pile on 87 acres for €2.7 million (€1.905 million is the listing on the Property Price Register, which is the figure achieved for the building on one acre) appears to have spring-boarded sales of high-profile homes in the west Cork coastal village. Since it sold in 2020, four additional houses near and over the million mark have sold in Glengarriff, the quaint little village nestled between the mountains and the sea on the Beara peninsula.

Lugdine Park, the former home on 35 acres of the late actor Maureen O’Hara, which sold for €1.6 million (for the lands and house) in 2015, was back on the market again in July 2021. It appears on the Property Price Register having sold for €2.525 million in March of this year. The house was largely untouched having been staged for sale, and this figure does not include the 35 acres of land that surrounds the 90-year-old villa.

The kitchen is accessed from the rear porch
The kitchen is accessed from the rear porch
Reception room. Photograph: Niamh Whitty/www.pictureitsold.ie
Reception room. Photograph: Niamh Whitty/www.pictureitsold.ie

Silverbirch House and Linden House both appear on the register as having sold for €1.576 million and €1.464 million respectively in 2022, as did a property in Bocarnagh that attained €900,000 in July last year.

The series of high-profile sales in the region is no doubt fuelled by a rush of wealthy individuals in search of safe havens after the pandemic. The latest high-profile house to come to the market is Church House, a converted former Church of Ireland property dating from 1860.

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Extending to 160sq m (1,715sq ft), the unique offering retains much of its original character with wood panelled walls, gothic windows and some attractive stained glass throughout.

The principal bedroom, which is en suite, lies off a mezzanine overlooking a large livingroom downstairs. Of further interest are vaulted ceilings, original doors, a bell tower and a vestry in the Ber-exempt property.

The principal bedroom lies off the mezzanine
The principal bedroom lies off the mezzanine
Two bedrooms lie on the ground floor
Two bedrooms lie on the ground floor

It has three bedrooms in total – two of which are downstairs – a kitchen accessed via the back porch, and a library-sittingroom, which is warmed by a stove.

Dining area
Dining area
Original stained glass has been repaired
Original stained glass has been repaired

The church sits on a mature site with specimen shrubs and trees, overlooking Glengarriff harbour. It is now on the market seeking €895,000 through Sherry FitzGerald O’Neill. This figure if achieved, after stamp duty, will add another property to the list of near million euro sales in a village where the population is less than a thousand people, showing the current voracious appetite for coastal properties in west Cork.

Elizabeth Birdthistle

Elizabeth Birdthistle

Elizabeth Birdthistle, a contributor to The Irish Times, writes about property, fine arts, antiques and collectables