Cleverly extended three-bed with secret green space for €495,000 in Walkinstown

Secreted off the busy Drimnagh Road, almost opposite the children’s hospital Children’s Health Ireland is St Mary’s Park, a mature estate of terraced mid-century homes.

Like many of its vintage it once had its own row of shops, but most have now closed. One has successfully pivoted from retail into the service industry. Little Scholars is a Montessori school next door to number 69, a feature that could be very appealing for parents of small children if they have to return to the office, even on a part-time basis.

As it is, the three-bedroom, end-terrace house is in turn-key condition, for it has been completely upgraded by its owners.

When they bought it in 2016, it had been neglected, they explain. “It hadn’t been touched since the 1970s and had been unoccupied for several years.” What they liked was the opportunity to extend out to the side and its southwest-facing garden. They paid €272,000 for it, according to the Property Price Register.

They have been very clever in prioritising the fabric of the building, pouring a whole new concrete ground floor with damp proofing and 150mm of insulation. There’s a further 100mm insulation in the external walls, 25mm more in thermal plasterboard and 300mm laid in the attic in two layers of 150mm. This, and the fact that there is only one open fireplace remaining in the house, has helped contribute to its impressive B2 Ber.

The house really works for those with children, according to the parents of three small boys . The original reception rooms have been opened up, with the sitting area to the front colour-blocked in Colourtrend’s Mussel, a deep and restful blue that highlights the bay window. It leads through to the eat-in kitchen to give a large L-shaped space that opens out to the garden.

To the left of the hall is a decent-size home office cum guest room in what was originally the garage. Behind it is a shower room, where any small kid spillage can be washed away, and to its rear is a good-size utility where there is a room to accommodate a second fridge freezer, a stacked washer and dryer and a rail above a sink where you can soak and hang clothes. A wall-hung collapsible drying rack by Leifheit pops out to keep the floor free of a cluttering clothes horse. There’s also a door directly out to the garden.

The garden, which is about 70sq m (753sq ft) and faces southwest, is smartly planted and includes a fine cherry tree. Their boundary is a curved wooden wall of oiled Douglas fir that conceals the neighbouring houses. Also included is a large detached garage that gives you off-street parking to the rear. Extending to about 20 sq m (215sq ft), the owners use it to store bikes, a chest freezer and garden furniture.

The element of surprise is hidden from view by the pedestrian rear access door, for there is a gloriously private green that all the houses on this side of the estate have access to from the back of the house. It’s a fantastic place for small kids to be able to go and kick a ball around, without parents having to go to the park.

Upstairs there are three bedrooms, two doubles and a single. The main bedroom is to the front.

The property now extends to 118sq m (1,270sq ft) and is seeking €495,000 through agents McGuirk Beggan. There is further off-street parking to the front.

Next door is also for sale. A mid-terrace three-bed of 103sq m (1,109 sq ft) with an F Ber rating is asking €429,950 through Castle Estate Agents.