Ballybride Manor in Rathmichael, Dublin 18 is a development of spacious, elegant homes in an area that is staking its claim as being south Dublin’s answer to the Hamptons. The owners of number 5 bought the site, measuring just under an acre, from the developer of Ballybride Manor in 1997, and set about designing their home with the help of architect Bernard Moloney. They had to keep the design consistent with the expansive American styling of the neighbouring houses, but otherwise they had plenty of scope to put their own personality on the house and fulfil their vision of a gracious home in this exclusive enclave.
You can see the owners’ unique style in the grand entrance hall, the arched windows in the formal living room, kitchen and dining room; the tall archways that link the different parts of the house, and a staircase that spirals up a turret attached to the back of the house. The owners also created dedicated areas to complement their routine, such as a snug area beside the dining room where they like to sit and read, a mezzanine/gallery overlooking the dining room, and a large lounge/study with ornate fireplace above the two-car garage.
With the Irish weather in mind, they left space for a sheltered car port between the house and the garage, allowing them to park up and tramp with their groceries through the side of the house without getting wet. And they built a superb veranda to the rear of the formal living room, sweeping over to the kitchen/dining area, and allowing for outdoor leisure and dining all year round.
At a generous 498sq m (5,360sq ft), with ceiling heights of almost 3 metres, Greenwood feels open and spacious inside; it sits behind electric gates and is surrounded by an acre of lush, mature grounds, with a gravel drive to the front that can park several cars, a sweeping, west-facing rear lawn, patio spaces, a large water feature and a private walled courtyard that acts as a suntrap, and is entered through reclaimed 19th-century gates.
The house has needed little work done over the last three decades; the owners put in roof and cavity wall insulation in 2015, remodelled the kitchen around 2020, and installed a new condensing boiler for the oil-fired central heating around 2022. Greenwood has a Ber energy rating of B3 and is for sale through DNG, seeking €2.8 million.
Downstairs, the floors are all laid in wide French oak, and the large formal sitting room to the left has triple aspect to the front, side and back gardens, allowing the sunlight to stream in from east to west all day long. To the right is a guest WC and a cinema/TV room with overhead projector and a bay window looking out to the front.
The kitchen, diningroom and reading nook are in an open-plan layout to the back; the kitchen has no shortage of cabinet space and stone worktop space, integrated appliances and a peninsula with stools for informal dining or additional worktop space. The reading nook is separated from the sunken diningroom by open brickwork, and the fireplace in the diningroom has a solid fuel stove with a dramatic-looking stone chimney swooping up to the double-height vaulted ceiling. Sliding doors lead out to the private courtyard.
Off the kitchen, a second, smaller hallway leads to a spacious laundry room and hot press, and out to the car port. There are two open storage areas in this hall for storing sports gear and schoolbags. The current owners have put a large wine fridge in one of the alcoves.
A large, elegant staircase runs from the main hall up to the first floor, where there are four double bedrooms arranged around a very spacious landing. The main bedroom has triple aspect to front, side and back, and boasts a large walk-in wardrobe and en suite. There’s a bay window and a feature marble fireplace here too. The third bedroom has a bay window to the front, and a modern en suite. Down a hallway towards the rear is the main family bathroom, which is Jack and Jill, and opens into the fourth bedroom. The hallway leads on to that mezzanine/gallery overlooking the dining room, which the owners use as a home office.
Down another hallway to the north of the house is the large lounge/study, which sits atop the car port and garage. It feels set apart from the rest of the house, so anyone using this room as a work-from-home space will find it easy to keep their work and home lives separate. There’s also a store room on the landing with a handy chute going straight down to the laundry room from the first and second floors.
On the second floor is the fifth bedroom with its own landing, plus a shower room and a yoga/Pilates space. Again, this area is versatile – use it as a guest suite, or perhaps as a living space for an au pair.
If you’re not quite ready for that house in the Hamptons, Greenwood could be the next best thing, and is for sale through DNG, seeking €2.8 million.
