In late 2006, when Ballymore launched its College Square development, off Wainsfort Road in Terenure, Dublin 6W, it sold the first phase of 35 houses in a weekend. Prices in the next phase ranged from €990,000 for a three-bedroom midterrace house to €1.995 million for a five-bed detached house. By the time the scheme was completed, in 2016, there were more than 113 units on the 11-acre site, which was formerly an Eircom training centre.
Number 18, a detached five/six-bed house of 292sq m (3,143sq ft), is now for sale for €1.35 million through Mullery O’Gara. It is well located, sitting on a corner plot close to the communal green area by the entrance, off Wainsfort Manor Drive, where there are lots of mature trees, flowerbeds edged with hedges, and a green with goalposts and benches. At the end of the road is a pedestrian entrance to the Kimmage Manor ecclesiastical complex, with an unassuming stretch of the river Poddle a short distance to the north.
As you would expect in a home with such a huge floor area, every room is generously proportioned, all with high ceilings and some with grand double doors. Designed by architects NDBA, the trademark Ballymore finish is evident in general terms and in small details, with creamy stone tiles and warm herringbone parquet underfoot, high-quality kitchen and bathroom fittings, unfussy oak-topped banisters, and hefty window catches.
The bright, double-height entrance hall has a handy bench under a coat rail. To the right, double doors open to a lovely triple-aspect living room with a tall marble fireplace and built-in bookcases. The original showhouses were fitted out by London interior architects Carter Tyberghein; number 18 is not occupied at present but has been styled with velvety opulence.
To the left, past the stairs and the first of five large bathrooms, is the large L-shaped kitchen/dining/family room, with painted wooden units, integrated appliances and marble worktops that also feature in the well-appointed utility room. At the other side, the dining area leads to an informal living room with a tall pitched roof and half-glass walls, and French doors to the garden. This tree-sheltered spot faces southeast and zigzags around the house; measuring 36ft by 36ft, it is divided into lawn, patio and planted areas, and a cute chalet-style shed forms part of the boundary, defining the two private parking spaces alongside the house. There are two side entrances.
Off the first-floor landing, which is extra-bright thanks to the window over the front door, are four bright double bedrooms with pale oak floors. The two at the back are on either side of the main bathroom, which has a shower over the bath. Across from this is the hot-press, with the air-to-water heating controls; the Ber is B3. One of the front bedrooms is fitted out as a study and the other, slightly smaller, is en suite; you could imagine this part of the house being a teenager’s lair.
At the top of the house is a room-sized landing, with doors to a balcony above the front door. Off this are two bedrooms, each about 30sq m. The first has a west-facing balcony, wardrobes in an alcove that could be sectioned off from the bedroom, and an en suite bathroom with free-standing bath and separate shower. The nicest bedroom, at the front, has the feel of a hotel suite.
With a largely neutral palette, number 18 exudes calm luxury but a family would soon fill it with colour, and while the garden is small in relation to the interior, there’s plenty of space to play in the immediate area, with a triangular green near the national schools at College Drive, the lovely Lakelands Park beside Terenure College, and Bushy Park just up the road towards Templeogue. There are schools, shops and sports clubs in abundance in this well-connected, settled suburb.
