The allure of Temple Road, known in estate agent parlance as “where the quiet money resides”, comes down to the space each residence offers.
Most of the homes here are stand-alone houses of stately proportions on their own private grounds. Houses on this road, which stretches from Richmond Avenue South to Dartry Road, tend to be more like country homes with the added benefit of having some of the largest gardens in the city.
Ranked as one of the top-five most expensive residential roads in the State, the wide leafy avenue enjoys great privacy, chiefly due to the fact that the road is less travelled than its Dublin 4 counterparts.
Houses here tend to come up for sale when the children in a family have flown the nest. Even then, some never reach the market and quietly change hands for significant sums of money.
Sherry FitzGerald has just launched Clevedon at number 27 Temple Road to the market, and given its elegant stature, size and the fact that it stands on 0.6 of an acre, it is likely to cause a stir among those in search of a prestigious home in the leafy suburb.
Extending to a spacious 491 sq m (5,285 sq ft) of elegant proportions, it has the added benefit of a self-contained apartment at garden level. Added to this is a charming coach house, which is contemporaneous to the house and retains a stable to the rear, with an original loose horse box, hay feeder and tack room, with an overhead loft where an ostler would once have slept.
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Located near the Richmond Avenue end of Temple Road – where the larger, more elegant stand-alone homes tend to be situated – and within a hop, skip and a jump to the Luas in Milltown, it is also close to Alexandra College and the High School, along with colleges of Gonzaga (in Ranelagh) and St Mary’s down the road in Rathmines.
The house has been extended and refurbished in recent years, though new owners may wish to put their own stamp on the place, in which case it would just be cosmetic changes that would be called for.
Inside a super, double-height hallway are interconnecting drawing and diningrooms, where ornate ceiling cornice work is remarkable, as are original fireplaces. To the rear of the inner hall lies a lounge that opens into a new kitchen/breakfastroom, which benefits from being triple aspect and has a fine bay window overlooking the front garden.
At garden level is a one-bedroom apartment (or a fifth bedroom) where a home office, livingroom, two kitchens, a bathroom and a storeroom lie.
On the top floor a spacious landing has four bedrooms, including a super principal bedroom complete with a walk-in dressingroom and en suite.
What is most interesting about this elegant house are the ancillary buildings included on the 0.6 acre site. In addition to the coach house with stable, is a cut-stone summer house and a lovely orangery, where the family who lived here entertained on balmy summer evenings. It is fitted with radiators and a fridge and is of timber-frame construction.
A paved patio sits to side and rear surrounded by well-stocked raised beds. The rear patio is completely private, overlooked by nothing but mature trees and specimen shrubs.
Clevedon is a substantial property not just in stature, site and space but also underscored by interesting outbuildings and marvellous original features.
Some properties on Temple Road have changed hands in recent years. Last year Lonsdale, a 791 sq m residence, was believed to have been snapped up by the Italian government as an ambassadorial residence for somewhere near its asking price of €7.5 million, though it does not seem to appear on the Property Price Register as of yet.
Former Paddy Power boss Patrick Kennedy was purported to have paid €10.225 million for Alston – which is number 19 Temple Road – in a quiet, off market deal in 2016.
Clevedon is a protected structure so is Ber-exempt, and is now on the market through Sherry FitzGerald seeking €6.75 million.
