By Irishexaminer.com,Trish Dromey

Copyright irishexaminer

Few developments in Dublin can be as picturesque and distinctive as Arkle Square in Stillorgan, an enclave of Victorian terraced properties which has been built around a central green area with an ornate fountain.

Newly arrived on the market with a guide of €615,000, No 12 Arkle Square is a two-bed house which- with granite frontage and a cute dormer window- looks pretty as a doll’s house The houses in the development, which was built in the 1860s to house “elderly gentlewomen of slender means” and redeveloped in the 1980, have now, according to selling agent Janet Phillips of Sherry FitzGerald Foxrock, become very sought after.

Although the exterior of No 12 is pretty and old world, the interior is modern and stylish. “It was upgraded before the current owners bought it in 2023 but they have since redecorated and refloored it,” says Ms Philips.

Downstairs in the 85 sq metres house there’s a kitchen with cream units and a breakfast counter as well as a living room with a fireplace while the upstairs has a bathroom and two bedrooms including an en suite. There’s a small terrace at the rear and a parking space at the front.

BER Exempt because of its age, it has timber sash windows at the front and double glazing at the rear.

Located around two km from Stillorgan village, Arkle Square is within a 15 minute walk from the Luas stop at Sandyford.

VERDICT: An attractive mix of old and new.

Restored schoolhouses like this one at Clounkeen East, Leap in East Cork have a kind of old world charm that new houses can rarely match.

Selling agent Pat Maguire says it’s the type of property with huge appeal to buyers coming to West Cork to experience its lifestyle – so he is expecting to have viewings with buyers from Dublin, Cork and the UK ones and with returning emigrants.

Built in the 1930s, The Mall Schoolhouse has been charmingly renovated by the current owners who turned it into a four bed, three bathroom home around 20 years ago. Modernising, while decorating it country cottage style, they fitted timber sash windows and gas heating but kept original features such as timber panelling and doors.

The hub of the house is a timber floored kitchen/diner with country style blue units with oak countertops, a stove and two large sash windows. Alongside it is an equally rustic sitting room with a stove and timber panelling. Modern additions include a bathroom at the front and one at the rear as well as a utility room.

The old school house now has three ground floor bedrooms and a fourth bedroom and a bathroom upstairs.

There’s a site of a third of an acre which includes a concrete parking area at the front and lawned gardens with a polytunnel at the rear.

The pretty rough plastered cottage style frontage on Birch Lodge on Fruit Hill near Dungarvan gives it the appearance of a modernised old property although it is actually a modern property which has been made to look old.

“It was built in 2008 and redecorated in recent years by the current owner who has given it a finish of a property featuring in a house and homes magazine,’’ reveals Eamonn Spratt of REA Spratt.

A four-bed dormer bungalow on a sloping three quarters of an acre site, it overlooks Dungarvan Bay at the rear.

Features include small cottage style front windows, larger ones at the rear to frame the views and engineered oak flooring.

Looking out on the bay through a set of sliding doors is an oak floored living room which has a redbrick fireplace with a stove. Adjoining it is a kitchen with cream units, oak worktops and a centre island while the ground floor also has a bathroom, a utility and two bedrooms which have been decorated cottage style.

Above the living area is a galleried landing which provides access to an en suite master bedroom with Velux windows.

The gardens at Birch Lodge have been beautifully tended and contain mature trees, shrubs and flowers as well a patio with a pond to attract wildlife and an expanse of lawn with a productive polytunnel.

Guiding at €585,000, Birch Lodge is located five km from Dungarvan

VERDICT: A modern B3 rated property with a vintage feel.

The owners of this pretty dormer property at Ballyhyland, Caim near Enniscorthy were so taken by the channel running along the side of their site that they named their home Stream.

Set against a leafy wooded backdrop, it’s a modern three-bed residence with a C2 BER which selling agent Bobby Kehoe of Kehoe and Associates expects to sell to a trade up buyer in the area or possibly to a Dublin or a UK buyer looking to move to the country.

It’s in a peaceful rural setting in a cul de sac of just six houses and is attractively decorated and very well cared says Mr Kehoe who recently listed it with a guide of €495,000.

Offering 182 sq metres of living space, the property has two living rooms including one at the front with blue half-timber panelled walls and one at the rear with a fireplace and a stove.

There’s also a spacious open plan kitchen/diner / sunroom with French blue hardwood topped units with a Belfast sink. In addition to this, there’s a utility , a guest WC and a bedroom. The upper level has a bathroom and two bedrooms , including one en suite.

Bounded at the sides by tall trees, the property has over half an acre of gardens which include a generous sized parking area at the front and a long lawned area at the rear.

Stream is located eight km west of Enniscorthy.

VERDICT: An tranquil rural retreat with woodland surrounds and a natural water feature.