Behind the Warren, a small housing estate off the Swords Road in Malahide, sits a large house named Fairacre, which lends its name to a development of six houses constructed in a field behind the house in about 2006.
Sites for four of the six properties came with planning permission, so at first glance the four appear identical in exterior, but it is the interiors where residents had input to change and alter to suit their requirements.
Constructed in 2006, number 4 Fairacre – a four-bed detached home – lies at the end of what is now a small cul-de-sac, and being the last house, there is little if any traffic passing so it’s a really quiet spot.
“We only saw the drawings and loved the whole open space over the kitchen,” say the owners, who are now downsizing after raising their family here. “The architects gave us a piece of paper with the external walls, and told us we could change the interiors to suit our needs – with the exception of moving the windows.”
I went to the cinema to see Small Things Like These. By the time I emerged I had concluded the film was crap
Jack Reynor: ‘We were in two minds between eloping or going the whole hog but we got married in Wicklow with about 220 people’
Forêt restaurant review: A masterclass in French classic cooking in Dublin 4
Charlene McKenna: ‘Within three weeks, I turned 40, had my first baby and lost my father’
Now all the living spaces face the front of the property, as do the bedrooms, taking full advantage of its southerly aspect. In fact, one of the best features, and indeed selling points, is the abundance of natural light flowing through the 278sq m (2,992sq ft) house.
Besides its southerly aspect to the front, morning light flows in through a double-height glazed wall in the kitchen. It allows so much light along the corridor upstairs, which is further enhanced by overhead Velux windows.
It is a deceptively large home just short of 3,000sq ft. At garden level a large sittingroom and family room flank each side of the hallway and both rooms have solid wooden flooring.
To the rear is a fine kitchen with a mezzanine overhead, along with an office, utility, loo and a guest bedroom. There is access to the garden from the guest bedroom and kitchen, which itself has lots of worktop space and inbuilt units including a wine cooler.
Upstairs are four fine bedrooms, the principal of which is en suite and stretches to more than 39sq m with lots of storage in full-length wardrobes. A practical laundry chute lies upstairs adjacent to the family bathroom which has a Jacuzzi bath.
Its location is about a 10-minute walk to Malahide Castle, where Sting and Blondie will play next summer, while Malahide village itself is about a 20-minute walk away. The fact that there is a bus stop on the main road adjacent to the six houses at Fairacre means you can be in the village in a matter of minutes for weekend socialising. Another benefit is the fact that Malahide is the first stop on the Dart, which means you can pick your seat for the trip to town.
Number 4 Fairacre, in excellent order, with a C1 Ber, is now on the market through Sherry FitzGerald, seeking €1.15 million.