Town & Country: What will €275,000 buy?

Address: 37 Joyce Road, Drumcondra, Dublin 9
Agent: Kelly Bradshaw Dalton

The current owners extended the ground floor of this two-bedroom house, taking it to 70sq m. Just off Home Farm Road, the house has a livingroom with fireplace, bathroom, kitchen/dining area on the ground floor and two bedrooms upstairs. There’s a garden at the back and a cemented area for off-street parking. BER: F

Plus: South-facing garden, a five-minute walk from Drumcondra village, and the upstairs bedrooms have original wooden floors.
Minus: Needs an update, including smoothing the downstairs ceilings. There is potential for the ground floor to be opened up.

Address: Moyleena, Derrymoyle, Oughterard, Galway
Agent: DNG Martin O'Connor

This brave beton-brut home is on 2.07 acres with its own mooring on Lough Corrib. Built in the 1970s as a holiday home, most of the accommodation is on the upper floor, which is surrounded by a balcony. Upstairs there are lots of glass and sliding doors to the balcony from the open-plan kitchen/living/diningroom. This has plywood floors and a Connemara marble fireplace. There’s a bathroom and three bedrooms all of which open to the exterior and overlook the outdoor swimming pool. The main bedroom has an en suite and walk-in wardrobe. BER: G

Plus: The chance to live in something that pushed the boundaries of its time and still stands out as being brave and quirky.
Minus: In need of an upgrade with the confidence (a good thing) to stand outside convention.