Cork €2.2 million:This glebe house on Blackrock Road in Cork is for sale for only the second time since it was built in 1878. Standing on 1.7acres, it has been sensitively maintained and still has almost all of its original features
They don’t build old rectories like they used to. Situated on the desirable Blackrock Road, the 19th-century Glebe House, as it was known, is among the finest houses of its era to come on the market in post-boom Cork city.
The last time this property, now called the Old Rectory, came up for sale was in 1986 when the present owners bought it for £120,500. At the time, local press called it the most expensive house ever sold in the city.
The current owners are seeking to downsize, and have put their five-bedroom home on the market with a rather bold asking price of €2.2 million.
Given that its location is to Cork what Ballsbridge is to Dublin, a potential buyer looking to settle in this area will get a lot more bang for their euros than they would for a similar calibre property in Dublin.
The Rectory has nearly all of its original features intact and it has been passionately cared for over the years. The original windows and shutters look as if they were put in only recently, while the beautiful ornate exterior red brickwork is also in great condition.
Any improvements that were made were done without taking from the character and structure of the house. For instance, a heating system, which allows for each room to be controlled separately, was installed decades ago and hidden away under floorboards (all original).
There are five rooms downstairs, including a large, bright drawing room opposite what can either be a smaller study or a cosy living room. The drawing room, with large bay windows, currently accommodates a piano and lots of period furniture and still there’s plenty of room for a waltz if the mood takes you.
The diningroom is tidy, and is currently home to a large wake table, so there’s room for about four to six chairs, but not too many more.
The kitchen is probably the most altered room in the house (although an old Aga harks back) and the owners made good use of Cork designers and craftspeople when they refurbished it.
A window was taken out and French doors installed which lead to a garden room, from where you have direct views of the 1.7 acres included with the house.
The end portion of the garden is divided to hide the vegetable and fruit patches, and from the back of the garden you can see the steeple of St Michael’s Church and the outline of a path which the previous clerical owners would have taken on their way to preach.
The remarkable thing is that despite being close to the busy Blackrock Road, from the back of the house virtually no traffic is audible, just the occasional sound of a rally from the adjacent tennis club.
Upstairs, the bedrooms are very spacious. Some enjoy views to the south and the east from their large windows. One smaller bedroom has been changed to accommodate an en-suite bathroom off the main bedroom, and while all have their original fireplaces, some have a more contemporary feel.
The present owners say they may be open to offers for some of the larger pieces of furniture, which were selected to fit rooms more than 10ft high.
This will be only the second time the house has been offered for sale since it was built in 1878 (an inscription inside the door gives the date).
It’s not cheap by Cork standards, but it wouldn’t be unusual to pay significantly more for the shell of an equivalent stately embassy in the Dublin 4 area.
The Old Rectory, Blackrock Road
Description: Five-bedroom 19th-century house with original features on 1.7 acres
Agent: Sherry FitzGerald
