The sub-€400,000 category is where the property market is at its busiest. Eunan Doherty, selling agent with DNG who specialises in Dublin 8 and Dublin 2, says viewing numbers are through the roof in this price range. “This bracket has seen significant growth over the last few years, but it’s still a good time to buy because supply is up – possibly a hangover from overpriced stock coming down – while prices have remained stable”. With rents continuing to soar, the sums are compelling when you consider that a mortgage repayment on a city-centre two-bed property is about €1,600 a month compared with a rent of about €2,400.
Doherty currently has a Dublin 8 property on his books that came on the market in late May seeking €395,000 and is now at €441,000. He regularly sees a premium being paid for turnkey properties, ie those presenting in excellent condition. “People will pay up to 15 per cent more for turnkey because they are only funded to buy and they simply don’t have the additional funds for renovation.”
Of those who are buying properties in need of repair he sees a lot with trade contacts who can help complete the refurb at the right price. With much of the value already gone from neighbourhoods such as Portobello and the Tenters in Dublin 8, buyers can still get good value for their €400,000 if they are prepared to move just a little further out. Here are 12 Dublin houses priced at €400,000 or less with excellent transport links.
WALK-IN CONDITION
Address 10 Belvedere Square, Mountjoy Square, Dublin 1
Price €275,000
Agent SherryFitzGerald
BER D1
Why buy? This late 1990s-built two-bed townhouse is one of a small scheme on a side street connecting Gardiner Street Upper to Belvedere Place, a block from historic Mountjoy Square where there are plans to redevelop the green space. The 68sq m, mid-terrace property has been freshly painted with new carpets laid upstairs. It opens directly into the living room where there is an open fire with the kitchen set to the rear. There is access to a west-facing yard but doesn't get much sunlight as it is bordered by a high wall. There is a communal bin area. It comes with one parking space out front.
Transport links A host of buses operate from Mountjoy Square, a few minutes' walk away. The Dart, commuter and mainline trains and red line Luas at Connolly station is a short walk.
DOER-UPPER
Address 528 North Circular Road, Dublin 7
Price €350,000
Agent DNG
BER G
Why buy? Nice ceiling heights, big windows and it qualifies for the Living City Initiative, which provides a 100 per cent tax break on refurbishments and upgrades, though work has to be completed by May 4th, 2020, to avail of this. There is no real scope to extend save for improving the property's only bathroom and perhaps reconfiguring the layout. The front room upstairs would make a lovely living cum dining room with the kitchen set to the rear, while the bedrooms could go downstairs with bathrooms on the returns. That way you could rent a room and earn a tax-free income to help with the mortgage.
Transport links A range of buses operate within a few minutes' walk on nearby Mountjoy Square. Access to the Dart, commuter, mainline trains and red line Luas at Connolly is a 10-minute walk.
SUNNY SIDE OF THE TRACKS
Address 34 Xavier Avenue, North Strand, Dublin 3
Price €395,000
Agent DNG
BER E2
Why buy? Xavier Avenue is a tiny cul de sac off North Strand where the Dart line runs at the end of the street and the Maynooth commuter and mainline trains to Sligo run to the rear of the houses on its south side. Number 34 is a three-bed, mid-terrace house on this side of the street, with a small but south-facing garden of about 30sq m where, at the end, the train line runs at a height of about 5m above garden level. The old Victorian has decent ceiling heights, interconnecting reception rooms with timber floors and a small kitchen to the rear. Upstairs there are three bedrooms – two doubles and a single – as well as a bathroom with a free-standing bath. The property measures 84sq m (904sq ft).
Transport links Equidistant between Clontarf and Connolly Dart stations, each is about a 10-minute walk. Countless city buses run at the end of the road.
Address 6 Mabel Street, Drumcondra, Dublin 9
Price €345,000
Agent Kelly Bradshaw Dalton
BER C3
Why buy? This two-bed, mid-terraced house is on the city side of Drumcondra village, within the warren of redbrick artisan houses that abut Croke Park. The house has been rewired and replumbed and had new windows fitted in 2012 and a new boiler installed last year, meaning that all you have to consider is its decor, the fun side of house buying. It has a small living room to the front, currently set out as a bedroom, a dining room the rear where the stairs leads up to the first floor and a separate kitchen to the back where there is a shower room, the property's only bathroom. Upstairs there are two double bedrooms. The house measures 61sq m (667sq ft) and has a small, east-facing outside space.
Transport links Drumcondra train station and a host of city buses are about about a five-minute walk away including the number 1 from Santry to Sandymount; the number 11 from Glasnevin's Wadelai Park to Sandyford, the number 16 which journeys from Dublin Airport to Ballinteer and the number 44 which travels from DCU to Enniskerry.
DUBLIN 4
Address 38 St Patrick's Villas, Irishtown, Dublin 4
Price €375,000
Agent PJ O'Dwyer and Co
BER G
Why buy? This two-storey cottage is situated on the quiet Ringsend end of this street and has a south-facing back garden of about 30sq m. It is also adjacent to the park. The two-bed, mid-terrace house is in need of complete modernisation although it has been extended and now comprises 68sq m (731sq ft) of space. The ground floor is set out with the living room to the front and the kitchen to the rear where the only bathroom is also located. Upstairs there are two bedrooms. It has the potential to become a really smart home with the right additional investment – a costly add-on in the current climate given that builders are currently refusing to consider jobs for less than €150,000.
Transport links The red line Luas is a 10-minute walk over the East Link bridge. The number 1 bus journeys between Santry and Sandymount while the number 47 travels from Poolbeg Street to Belarmine. Both Connolly station and South Dock Dart stations are about a 20-minute walk.
Address 6 Joy Street, Ringsend, Dublin 4
Price €395,000
Agent SherryFitzGerald
BER F
Why buy? Situated in the heart of Google-land this two-bed, mid-terrace house has an open-plan ground floor opening into the living room and leading through to the eat-in kitchen. There is a small yard to the rear where a toilet is also situated. On the first floor there are two bedrooms, a good double to the front and a single to the back. There is a very bright attic room with a large window overlooking the roofscapes. The property measures 73sq m (785sq ft), about the size of many of two-bed apartments for sale in the area. The only shower room is on the ground floor.
Transport links The house is about a five-minute walk to Grand Canal Dock Dart station and a similar distance to a range of buses servicing Santry, Belarmine, Tallaght, Jobstown and Citywest.
DUBLIN 6
Address 7 Ardee Grove, Rathmines, Dublin 6
Price €375,000
Agent Youngs
BER D1
Why buy? Situated on Ardee Road, a small side street just off the main drag in Rathmines, Ardee Grove is a small terrace of 1980s-built, two-bed townhouses with parking to the front. Number 7 opens into a small hall and then into the lounge-cum-dining room. This room is centred around an open fireplace and the small, scullery-style kitchen is off it to the front. The stairs lead to the first floor from the lounge and there are two double bedrooms and the only bathroom. The house is heated by old-fashioned electric storage heaters.
Transport links Cross-town bus routes on the Lower Rathmines Road travel between Beaumont and Dundrum; Clongriffin and Ballycullen; Portmarnock and UCD. The Charlemont stop on the green Luas line is about a 13-minute walk.
Address 22 Aideen Avenue, Terenure, Dublin 6W
Agent Quillsen
Price €375,000
BER G
Why buy? This cute two-bed, terraced cottage has just 70sq m and is in need of a complete overhaul. The upside is that it offers plenty of scope for same with the usual planning permission. It has a very good-sized rear garden, a separate garage and vehicular rear access, in addition to a standalone office/study – called a sewing room. The accommodation comprises an entrance porch, sitting room, two bedrooms, kitchen/dining room, bathroom and pantry.
Transport links Situated between Terenure Road and Larkfield Park, a 10-minute walk in either direction will access a range of city buses including the 15A, 83 and 54A.
DUBLIN 7
Address 17 Phoenix Manor, Dublin 7
Price €325,000
Agent Property Team Lappin Estates
BER D
Why buy? This 1990s-built property is in east Cabra, not Stoneybatter, as listed, but it offers a lot of accommodation for its asking price. It has a separate kitchen and living room with open fire, a decent north-facing back garden and off-street parking as well four bedrooms: two doubles and a single on the first floor – the main bedroom has a shower en suite bathroom, and there is a fourth bedroom in the attic, part of the original design of the property, which extends to 94sq m. It has been been rented out and needs new carpets and flooring. The windows will need updating too.
Transport links Number 37 runs at the end of the cul de sac, while the crosstown 46a is around the corner on North Circular Road. The green line Luas stop at Phibsboro is about a 15-minute walk, while the red line at Heuston is about 25 minutes.
Address 35 Montpelier Gardens, Dublin 7
Price €395,000
Agent DNG
BER E1
Why buy? This is a three-bed, mid-terrace in need of complete modernisation but less than a five-minute walk from Phoenix Park in the cul de sac part of Montpelier Gardens. There is a decent living room to the front with an office to the rear, as well as the kitchen. Opening up these two rooms would help to modernise the layout. Upstairs there are two doubles and a single and an avocado bathroom suite. It measures 80sq m (861sq ft) and has pedestrian rear access to its northeast-facing garden. The street is adjacent to what was the O'Devaney Gardens flat complex where last year Ministers Eoghan Murphy and Paschal Donohoe tuned the sod on the first phase of social homes to be built on the site.
Transport links The terminus of the cross-city 46a bus to Dún Laoghaire is a couple of minutes' walk while the red-line Luas and commuter and mainline trains are at Heuston Station, less than a 10-minute walk.
DUBLIN 8
Address 17 St Kevin's Parade, Portobello, Dublin 8
Price €395,000
Agent DNG
BER E1
Why buy? At first glance, 17 St Kevin's Parade, just off Clanbrassil Street, seems like a very bijou buy but the single-storey terraced artisan cottage has been extended and houses two bedrooms, one inside the front door, and a smaller second to the rear. The living room at the heart of the house is lit by a rooflight and back door though there are no windows. There is a galley-style kitchen to the rear. The property has a windowed bathroom and measures 57sq m (613sq ft) with a surprising further 21sq m (226sq ft) of attic space that has a roof light and could, subject to planning and the addition of a dormer window, be turned into a proper bedroom. There is a small, west-facing rear garden.
Transport links Bus stops for the numbers 49 and 54a are closest but the crosstown number 16, between Ballinteer and Dublin Airport, and the number 22, between Ashington and Drimnagh, can be caught nearby on South Circular Road. The property is equidistant between green line Luas stops at Harcourt and St Stephen's Green.
Address 2 Faulkner's Terrace, Kilmainham, Dublin 8
Price €375,000
Agent Felicity Fox
BER F
Why buy? This four-bed, mid-terrace, single-storey house is a bit of a Tardis in that it is far bigger inside than its exterior suggests. The main bedroom is set to the front, on the Old Kilmainham Road opposite St James's Hospital, while the living room, to the rear, spans the width of the house and is lit by a rooflight only. The kitchen is hived off this space and to its rear are three more bedrooms and the property's only bathroom. The house measures 86sq m (925 sq ft) but it is its 133sq m (1,431sq ft), north-facing back garden that will really surprise and offer potential, subject to planning and deep pockets.
Transport links The crosstown number 13 goes between Harristown and Grange Castle; and the number 123 travels from Walkinstown to Marino. The Rialto stop on the red line Luas is less than a 10-minute walk through St James's Hospital complex across the street.
HOW A RENOVATION CAN TURN OUT
Address 8 Lennox Place, Portobello, Dublin 8
Price €375,000
Agent Owen Reilly
BER D2
The residents of Lennox Place were in full swing with preparations for their annual street party last weekend, on the small tree-lined street that links Lennox Street to the Grand Canal, writes Elizabeth Birdthistle.
It is 180 years since this street and its environs were part of the Royal Portobello Gardens where annual celebrations included acrobatics, bands, fireworks and “a troupe of highly trained performing dogs”.
One year the festivities included a performance by circus owner Pablo Fanque (who was later immortalised in the Beatles song Being for the Benefit of Mr Kite), and in 1860 just a few years before construction of the houses on Lennox Place began, the famous tightrope walker Charles Blondin created a sensation with his tightrope act. The previous year he had been the first man to cross Niagara Falls on a tightrope.
While the street party is today a more relaxed affair “it shows how close we are as a community” says the current owner of 8 Lennox Place.
Number 8, part of a former coach house on the terrace was purchased by the owner in 2016 for €285,000 when it was a shell.
Today the property extends to 51 sq m (549 sq ft) and is an attractive – albeit tiny – townhouse, situated in one of the most popular spots in the city, due to its location just minutes from Harcourt Street and local eateries.
What is remarkable about number 8 is the bold use of colour throughout, at a time when so much domestic interior décor has been slavishly cloned from design brochures.
The exterior façade was painted in a bespoke colour, which was created by Brian Quinn of Q and Co, a family business of decorators since 1940, whose work includes many historic homes. This contrasts wonderfully with the bold tangerine of Farrow & Ball’s Charlotte’s Locks, and is the perfect introduction to the eclectic interior.
A sofa from Minima sits comfortably alongside a chair sourced from Age Action on Camden Street,that cost €20 prior to being reupholstered, as does a rug from Ikea against a backdrop of mid-century furniture.
The property has two bedrooms, a fine sized principal painted in Farrow & Ball Hague Blue, and a smaller single bedroom sitting adjacent to a good sized family bathroom.
Downstairs, the livingroom opens into the kitchen and out onto a small patch of courtyard, which though a communal area for the three houses along the terrace is home to Lenny, the family dog who takes his name from Charles Lennox, after whom the street is named.
