BAG YOURSELF A BIJOU HOME

A shortage of square footage is not deterring potential house buyers as dinky properties flood the market...

WHEN your house-buying budget is tight, as it invariably is, you have one of two options. Either you can move out to a quieter, less popular area… or you can go smaller.

Or more specifically, go skinnier. One of Dublin’s narrowest houses has recently found a buyer — one with seemingly no shortage of cash. Number 38 Carysfort Avenue was on the market at €525,000 and sold for its asking price via Allen & Jacobs Estate agents.

From the outside, the terraced house looks incredibly narrow, but previous owners have taken great care to maximise space. The property is sandwiched between two Victorian-era homes and despite the narrow exterior in the front, the house opens out onto a rather surprisingly large extension on the back.

The property was ‘virtually rebuilt’ and extended in 2009 and is said to have been finished to an ‘extremely high standard throughout’. The brightly decorated property also boasts underfloor heating, a walled garden and solid walnut timber floors.

And of course, it’s centrally located within one of the most desirable neighbourhoods in the capital.

However, there’s another property on the market — again in a hugely desirable area — that you may need to shimmy through quite a bit.

The Blackrock house is just one of a number of properties that are becoming increasingly popular as house prices climb and climb.

Many home owners seem to believe that small is beautiful… and in some cases, pretty lucrative.

Last October, 24 Rutland Cottages in Dublin’s city centre drew a huge number of viewings. Within a few days, the property had received over 30,000 views on Daft.ie and MyHome.ie.

Some parties were merely curious to see what the last house in Dublin priced under €100,000. Many others were genuinely in the market for a bijou space; albeit one that needed serious amounts of TLC.

Located in the heart of the city centre near Summerhill, Buckingham Street, Rutland Street and Sean MacDermott Street, the single-story cottage measures 31 square metres with a small yard to the rear. At the time of buying it was essentially one open plan room with a fireplace and a bathroom. It went on the market for €85,000. In the end, it was snapped up by a developer for €100,000, and one who didn’t mind that the property was in need of complete refurbishment.

According to the property price register number 26, two doors up, sold in February 2017 for €77,500, while next door, number 23, sold for €84,345 in May of the same year. Number 21 sold for €88,800 in November 2016 and number 18 sold for €93,000 in August 2015.

However, if you’re in the market for a very, very compact house, there are certainly a few on offer in Ireland right now so we’ve taken a look.

Though €295,000 may get you a sizeable family home in rural Ireland, if you are hoping to live in the millionaire’s playground of Dublin’s Ranelagh on a budget, you’d better be prepared to live small. Number 19 Colliers Avenue has plenty of what they refer to in the business as ‘kerb appeal’. At 31.5 square metres, the cottage is divided into a living room, galley kitchen, shower room and double bedroom.

With 31 square metres of living space, this cottage, located about 3 km west of Tallanstown, is very cosy indeed. The kitchen/diner, bathroom and bedroom certainly have everything that you need, including a range stove, wall space for TV, washing machine and a shower. The one-bed sits on a half-acre site, meaning that there’s scope to extend, subject to the necessary planning requirements.

Dublin 3 is a fairly desirable postcode, and if you buy this cottage, you’re getting about 29 square metres of house for your money. The house is on a quiet cul de sac and boasts a compact kitchen, bathroom and a very, very intimate yard.

Perhaps best suited to someone who wants a city crash pad, Maxwell Street is due a complete refurbishment. At 33 square metres, potential to create a showstopper is perhaps limited, but there’s scope here to come away with a quaint, bijou cottage.

Surprising: The house at Carysfort Avenue which sold recently for €525,000