The houses that line the Stillorgan dual carriageway hint at a suburban past that commuters along that thoroughfare often forget existed. The dual carriageway that feeds traffic out of the city opened in 1977, and the houses that line the route from Donnybrook to UCD are very much of their time – fine, big, detached and semi-detached family homes set over two floors.
Number 129, a four-bedroom detached property that spans 260sq m / 2,800sq ft is located at the Nutley Road intersection, and is just a five-minute walk to the gates of UCD via Greenfield Park.
The owners bought the property 10 years ago with much of the renovations – including wooden floors throughout – already done.
0 of 5
There are three reception rooms, all with marble fireplaces to escape to. One to the front is being used as a home office and has built-in bookcases for files. The room to its rear opens into an extension that has a timber-panelled roof and leads out to the garden.
On the other side of the hall to the front of the property is a formal dining room and to its rear is a fourth living room in what originally would have been the breakfast room.
However big the family, there is plenty of room to escape to, and a separate space for friends.
The kitchen is to the back of the house and at first glance appears to be quite small but on entry you discover that it winds back on itself, and extends around to the front of the house via a large utility room into a den (converted from the original garage). And yet it doesn’t feel as spacious as it actually is.
The next owner might like to reimagine the configuration of this part of the house to create an open-plan living/kitchen/diningroom that would bring in more light and better knit the gorgeous garden into the fabric of the house. Overlooking a rather fine garden this room has the best views in the house.
The green space is wider than it is deep and has mature hedging on all sides, making it completely private. Westerly in aspect, it includes a mature Japanese maple tree, a patio area that runs the length of the house and a lawned area. The adjacent N11 traffic is audible but the owner says you quickly get used to it. She no longer hears it.
As you climb the stairs to the first floor the water tower in UCD is visible in the distance. From here it looks as if it is surrounded by nothing but greenery.
Upstairs are four double bedrooms off the long landing. Three of these have shower ensuite bathrooms. The hum of traffic in the rooms to the front is low. The main bedroom has a walk-through wardrobe and an open shower room.
The property, which is asking €1.25 million through agents DNG, has gated, off-street parking for up to five cars. A nearby house, Greenfields, at 119 Stillorgan Road – a four-bedroom detached house in need of complete modernisation – sold 12 months ago for €1.03 million.
