The price of Limasol, a fine Victorian house at 6 Marlborough Road, in Glenageary, has not changed much in 10 years, but the house has.
The five-bedroom semi-detached house last came on the market in 2004, when it sold at auction for €2.525 million, not a surprising price at the time for a house on this road.
Renovated and extended to 402sq m (4,327sq ft), it has been put on the market by Kieran Wallace of receiver KPMG and is being sold through Savills asking €2.65 million.
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In between times, it's been a high-end rental and was much sought after during a period when companies were happy to pay monthly rentals well above €7,000 for senior executives relocating to Ireland with their families. A market still exists for that, but the new owners of this house will most likely be a family trading up to the Co Dublin address .
Limasol is fully furnished in great style and perfectly maintained, so it doesn’t have that forlorn look that large investment houses have once the renters have packed up and gone.
As it is now, it it is a pristine example of how to transform a large but gloomy Victorian house into a sunny, stylish and comfortable family home.
The basics were always there though from the high ceilings on both levels and good room proportions to the decorative plasterwork and good fireplaces.
Limasol is one of the earlier houses on the road and it has a curious name for a house in south Dublin. Like its attached neighbour, it was built in the mid-1850s for a British soldier returning home from a posting in Cyprus. It is thought that two brothers bought the plot and built matching houses for themselves.
Marlborough Road has, since it was built on by Victorians in search of out-of-town spacious villas, been popular with well-heeled families. The houses are large, on generous plots and crucially the Dart is at the end of the road. So access to the city centre for work and school for children is easy.
A key change in the house now when compared to 10 years ago is the attractive single story extension that runs the width of the rear.
It made room for a large eat-in kitchen, a family room and en suite guest bedroom.
All these rooms have high ceilings, which give a great sense of space and open out via French doors onto a sunny paved patio area.
The kitchen is in a French-inspired rustic style with a flagstone floor, painted timber units topped with granite, a large island area and a five-door Aga. Off it is a well-kitted out utility room.
The family room off the kitchen is the first and most cosy of the four reception rooms. The others are the formal rooms on either side of the front door: one a large dining room, the other a grand living room. Each has a period fireplace and the space and light advantage of deep bay windows. A fourth living room is off the hall and opens into the newer family room at the back.
Upstairs there are four bedrooms, two with en suites and a family bathroom. Three are off a wide top landing with a stained-glass rooflight. The other is on the half return.
While the original features in all bedrooms have been kept, the bathrooms are very modern in terms of fixtures and fittings.
The outdoor space reflects the rental market it was appealing to. Electric gates control access to the front garden which has been gravelled over to make space to park several cars. The large back garden is mostly under lawn for no nonsense maintenance.
