It is 100 years since 17 Temple Gardens last came on the market. In 1918, the couple who had been renting the Rathmines house – then a relatively new build – got the opportunity to buy, and it has remained in the same family since.
Called Northcote (all the houses on this leafiest of Dublin 6 roads have names, painted in crisp black-and-white beside their entrance gates), it is a solid, rambling Edwardian redbrick with 340sq m (3,660sq ft) of accommodation spread over three floors. And no basement – a feature that appeals to many buyers in this price and size range; that and the discreet exclusivity of the road.
In 2016 three houses on Temple Gardens changed hands: number 5, which sold off-market for €6.5 million; number 1, a semi-detached house which fetched €5.85 million (more than €1 million over the asking price); and number 19, which sold for a little more than €4 million. Last year, number 7 sold for €3.2 million. The highest prices were for houses which had recently undergone makeovers, although even those needing modernisation achieved strong figures because the large, mature sites that these handsome properties stand on give plenty of options when it comes to extending.
Original layout
Inside, Northcote is a comfortable, well lived-in house with its original layout intact, so whoever buys number 17 – on the market through Sherry FitzGerald for €4.5 million – will likely embark on a renovation programme before moving in. It will all be subject to planning permission as these houses are protected.
There are three elegant reception rooms and a large kitchen downstairs where the ceilings are high and the proportions generous. The long list of original features includes fine fireplaces (including attractive tiled ones with elaborate surrounds in the bedrooms) and stained glass; the folding mahogany service table in the hall hints at a bygone era of servants and formal entertaining. Upstairs the six bedrooms, all doubles, are over two floors, and there are two bathrooms.
Taking a few metres off the rear garden to extend out to build a modern eat-in kitchen and an updated utility room won’t impact greatly on the mature garden which is wide and long. A bonus is the rear vehicular access on to Richmond Avenue South. To the front the handsome house is set well back from the road with plenty of off-street parking. The Cowper Luas stop is just a few minutes’ walk away.
