CO LAOIS €1.050M:A LARGE modern house on four acres of land on the Emo Court estate in Emo, Co Laois, has come on the market at just over €1 million through Knight Frank.
The 464.5sq m (5,000sq ft) house is one of just a handful of homes within the 55 acre estate which has one of Ireland's finest Georgian houses, Emo Court, as its centrepiece.
Emo Court is now run by the OPW which also maintains the grounds and the parkland.
The new house, with the grand address of Emo Park, was built by South African Johan Taylor who moved to Ireland to coach rugby for a season in 1997 but who has ended up staying for 11 years.
His wife, Anlo followed in 2000 and baby Daniel arrived in 2006. The couple fell in love with Emo Park during Anlo's first visit and later they were able to buy a site in there. They share one of the estate's original gate lodge entrances with the other houses.
"The countryside views and forest walks of Emo Park reminded us of outdoor living in South Africa," says Taylor who built the five-bedroom house using direct labour.
He describes the process as "challenging at the best of times" particularly as he now divides his time between Ireland where he has been coaching in Portarlington, and Sri Lanka where he spends several months a year with rugby teams.
All the while Anlo Taylor has been commuting to her executive job in the IFSC in Dublin, but the time has now come for the family to move back to South Africa to be closer to family in the Stellenbosch region.
One thing the couple missed a lot was the climate, and the Emo house had to be warm all year round. The geo-thermal heating system keep the living spaces at at an ambient tempareture.
Access to the outdoors was also important, and so the open-plan livingroom has three sets of sliding doors onto a wide decked area leading to the lawns that surround the house.
One of the main objectives was to let in as much light as possible, and to enjoy the countryside views. Each of the main rooms has tall windows or French doors. The family spend most of their time in the open-plan living and dining room which is centered around a single column with an indoor barbecue on the one side and a fireplace on the other.
The house is close to the villages of Emo and Killenard which has the Heritage Golf and Spa Resort.
Emo Court has its own coffee shop and formal gardens.
Emo Park, Emo, Co Laois
Newly built 464.5sq m (5,000sq ft) house with five en suite bedrooms and large open plan living areas. Grounds of four acres.
Agent: Knight Frank
