The most expensive house likely to be sold in Dublin this autumn is Number 7 Shrewsbury Road, a large semi-detached house that is expected to fetch over £2 million at a Sherry FitzGerald auction on September 23rd.
The 1930s three-storey house, located close to the junction with Merrion Road, has six bedrooms, several reception rooms and a third of an acre of south-facing garden.
The sale is likely to attract a number of potential purchasers keen to live at Dublin's most expensive address. There are only 29 houses on the road and sales are increasingly rare. With prices rising dramatically in recent years, owners have been particularly reluctant to sell in case their house turns out to be a bargain.
Number 7 is the first house to come on the open market on the road since 1996, when Pitcairn - a large detached house needing total refurbishment - was bought by businessman Des McEvaddy for a then record price of £1.55 million. Two houses have changed hands privately since then and last December a site of just under half an acre owned by TCD's School of Pharmacology fetched £3.6 million under the hammer. It was bought by businessman Niall O'Farrell, who owns the Black Tie chain of shops. He intends to build two houses on the site.
Number 7 is one of just a handful of semi-detached houses on the road, and this may not suit purchasers looking for the ultimate prize - one of the older detached houses at the further end, close to Ailesbury Road. Still, it is an impressive family home with just over 3,300 sq ft and a further 800 sq ft of space in the floored attic. There are three formal reception rooms, two of which could be joined to make one very large room running from the front to the back of the house. There is also a small study and a big sunny breakfastroom that opens into the kitchen. Patio doors lead from the breakfastroom to a sunny outdoor terrace.
The back garden is beautifully tended and is very well sheltered with mature trees and shrubs.
Upstairs, there are five bedrooms and a bathroom off a very large landing. One flight up again is the attic floor where there is one bedroom and access to the huge attic space that has been used as a playroom. It has a very high ceiling and could be converted into more bedrooms or a home office.
