Improved D4 mews with picket fence charm for €1.1m

The mews houses of Lansdowne Park are always in demand. Secreted away off Dublin 4’s main drags the lane links directly to Shelbourne Road and Northumberland Road and a cul-de-sac crescent.

It’s a sign of the busy winter market when number 143 is launching so close to Christmas, a time when agents are usually winding down. But then this is no ordinary year.

The double-fronted, cut-stone property measures 147sq m (1,582sq ft) over two floors and has a further 32sq m (9344sq ft) of space at attic level where there is a home gym and home office – rooms which in a Covid world have become strong selling points.

The three-bed, which has a B2 Ber rating, last sold in September 2016 for €915,000, according to the Property Price Register and its owners hired architect Sandra O’Riordan of O’Carroll O’Riordan to help tweak the layout and upgrade its creature comforts. During lockdown they availed of a Zoom consultation with Kingston Lafferty Design’s Amira Al Shater, who suggested adding vibrancy through colour and tile texture choices.

There is now underfloor heating throughout the ground floor beneath timber-look tiles which adds visual texture. The front door opens directly into the breakfast area and the rest of the floor is set out in a broken plan fashion. The breakfast space, positioned to get easterly sun, opens through to the Stiffkey Blue-painted kitchen and on further to the dining and living areas. This overlooks the garden which was landscaped by Alan Coffey, a 2016 Bloom gold medal winner.

Clever use of the space under the stairs has hived out a utility room and separate guest toilet.

The west-facing rear garden has lots of planting for privacy and charming picket fences give an American feel. The patio is paved in an outdoor version of the tiling in the living and dining rooms to make inside and outside feel more cohesive.

There are three bedrooms on the first floor, two good doubles, with the main en suite and a decent-sized single. The bathrooms are all finished to a sleek standard. On the second floor are two good-sized attic rooms.

The owners are moving to Sandymount to be within walking distance of their children’s school. Number 143 is seeking €1.1million through agent Sherry FitzGerald.

Recent prices achieved for properties on the road range from a small, two-bed unit of just 57sq m that was offered at auction last week guiding €395,000 but failed to sell.

Neighbouring number 125, a large, four-bed new build brought to market by James O’Flynn of Jamor Developments last May, sold in September for €1.2million, according to the property price register. It measured 181sq m/ 1950sq ft and sold for €50,000 below its asking, during what was a very challenging season given restricted viewings and an unease about how the market might play out.