A €159,000 price tag on these apartments in D15 set a new benchmark for starter homes in the city, writes FIONA TYRRELL
CAPEL Developments is billing the one-bedroom apartments at its new Waterways scheme in Ashtown, Dublin 15, as the cheapest in the city. Priced at €159,000, the apartments in the canalside scheme are 35 per cent cheaper than when the first phase of the large development was launched by Capel back in 2005.
In 2006, one-beds at the scheme were priced around €300,000, 47 per cent more expensive than today’s price.
In a bid to clear overhanging stock, Capel Developments is offering deep discounts and now claims to be offering the cheapest one-bed apartments in the capital.
The €159,000 one-bed units have 47–50sq m (505–543sq ft) of space. Also on sale from this weekend through Savills are 73–80sq m (790–860sq ft) two-bed apartments which are priced from €248,000.
Three-bed top floor apartments have 85–105sq m (918–1,135sq ft) and are priced from €279,000.
Capel is not the only company facing up to severe price cuts. Right across the city developers are reducing prices wholesale, particularly in high density schemes that have been finished but largely unoccupied for many months.
In the cases of many large long-running schemes apartments are now cheaper than when they were first launched in 2005.
P Elliot is selling apartments at the Arena, Tallaght from €169,000. When the scheme first launched back in October 2005, one-beds started at €235,000.
Meanwhile, Castlethorn has reduced prices at its showpiece scheme in Adamstown where one-beds are now €195,000, down from €280,000.
In Herberton, a development that replaces the old Fatima Mansions housing scheme in Dublin 8, one-beds were €295,000; now they cost €165,000.
At Crosbies Yard, a development by Harry Crosbie in the docklands, one-beds are now being offered at €189,000, down from €270,000.
Capel was the first developer to break ranks at the end of 2007 when it publicly advertised a price cut of €100,000 off the price of apartments at The Crescent, which also forms part of the Ashtown site.
The move proved quite successful for the developer, securing over 60 sales and forcing other developers to follow suit.
Since then the economic outlook has deteriorated significantly, leaving big developers such as Capel with even more unsold stock on their hands. Capel is hoping that this, the second significant price drop, will attract buyers who have been waiting for prices to bottom out.
The Waterways forms part of Capel Developments’s scheme in Ashtown, the new residential area taking shape beside Ashtown train station in north-west Dublin. So far, 300 of Capel’s units have been sold and there are 120 homes left to be sold.
The overall district is being developed by a number of companies, including Capel Developments, Ballymore and Castlethorn Construction. When finished, it will have some 4,000 new homes.
The Waterways has a great location in the overall scheme. It is close to the commercial hub and train station and overlooks the Royal Canal.
In a bid to attract buyers, Capel has also upped the spec on communal areas and apartment finish. The bulk of apartments in this release are south-facing with large balconies or terraces facing onto the the canal. All units have decent walk-in storage rooms and bathrooms have chic sanitary wear, full tiling and large mirrors.
Three show units will be open this weekend to give potential buyers a flavour of what is on offer. Going with a retro theme, each show apartment is decked out in the style of the 1950s, 1960s or 1970s. Interior designer Liz LaCumber has used original furniture, accessories and artwork from these decades to achieve this look. All units have a designated underground car-parking space. Maintenance fees are from €1,325 to €1,725 a year, but owners have to pay an extra €100 a year service charge for parking spaces.
