Ranelagh cottage with extension plan in place for €425k

Built in 1900, Colliers Avenue is a quiet cul-de-sac off Ranelagh’s main drag. Bounded by Sandford College on one side the single-storey cottages, while mainly small in size, from about 34sq m (366sq ft) upwards, pack a lot by way of a desirable address.

Number 6 is a mid-terrace unit that opens straight into its living room, where the ceiling height is an impressive 3.3m (10.8ft).

The room has timber floors, an open fire and looks onto the lane, which has an easterly aspect. It’s a very nicely balanced space and original to the house.

At some point an extension was added to the rear, giving you an internal kitchen with a rooflight and a shower room to its rear and the two rooms on the other side. One of these is more technically considered a study as it doesn’t have a window but gets natural light from an overhead Velux.

The property was fully replumbed, partially rewired and got a new bathroom in 2018 when gas heating was also installed and the walls of the bathroom and back bedroom were dry-lined.

Extending to 50sq m (538sq ft) it has an F Ber rating and agents Sherry FitzGerald are seeking €425,000 for the house, which equates to a capital value of €8,500 per sq m. Eagle-eyed property watchers may have noted that back in 2018 it was brought to market through another agent seeking €449,000.

The current layout needs a rethink as it doesn’t make enough of the fact that the property’s small sliver of patio is west-facing. The current owners employed architect Eamon Gogarty to draft and get planning permission for a very smart split-level extension to the rear.

This would see the existing extension demolished and a new one constructed that would go down half a level to give you an open kitchen/diner that would lead directly out to a small patio.

On the first floor there would be two fine bedrooms, each washed in light by floor-to-ceiling glass walls.

It’s a really smart plan that would add about 30sq m (323sq ft) to the current footprint. Gogarty estimates that the build will cost between €3,000 and €5,000 per sq m, giving an overall outlay of between €240,000 and €400,000, depending on finishes, and will include gentle refurbishment of the remaining front room.

A smart buyer might take a longer view, move in and investigate the works in a few years’ time when building costs may have stabilised somewhat.

A builder buyer, with the ability to do some of the structural works themselves, might even consider reconfiguring the current layout to make better use of the existing space. The property also needs an upgrade to its insulation to raise its Ber rating, which at present is languishing at a lowly F.