{"id":178102,"date":"2025-12-06T17:00:13","date_gmt":"2025-12-06T17:00:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/178102\/"},"modified":"2025-12-06T17:00:13","modified_gmt":"2025-12-06T17:00:13","slug":"e535k-toms-cottage-had-tired-old-bones-but-it-now-has-a-bold-new-look","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/178102\/","title":{"rendered":"\u20ac535k Tom’s Cottage had tired old bones, but it now has a bold new look"},"content":{"rendered":"

TOM\u2019S Cottage is so crisply presented that it\u2019s hard to believe the builder had to use a slash hook to find it when it first came to market.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was advertised as a site for sale which I think turned people off, but my foreman told me there was a house there. I had to get a slash hook to find it, and after we bought it, it took two months to clear out the site,\u201d says builder Se\u00e1n Healy of Lauragh Construction, a Kerry company that specialises in home and commercial renovations and new build projects.<\/p>\n

The cottage, 1km outside the village of Ballyvourney, had seen better days when Se\u00e1n bought it, but he already had a strong template, having renovated and restored similar traditional properties in Kenmare the previous year.<\/p>\n

\"Tom'sTom’s Cottage rear view<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a style when we are renovating these kinds of properties. The problem is, we can\u2019t get enough of them,\u201d he says. Before Tom\u2019s Cottage, he renovated Maura\u2019s Cottage, a lookalike property in Garranes, Kenmare, as well as a neighbouring home called John-Joe\u2019s Cottage. The houses are named in honour of previous owners.<\/p>\n

Among the types of properties Lauragh Construction likes to renovate are one-and-a-half or two-storey traditional farmhouses, which they gut and rebuild as models of energy efficiency, well-lit and superbly insulated. But even with modern comforts, they still retain their rural charm.\u00a0<\/p>\n

For instance, Tom\u2019s Cottage was fitted with new triple-glazed windows that mirror the originals. \u201cThey\u2019re exactly the same size because I wanted to retain the look,\u201d Se\u00e1n says.<\/p>\n

\"It'sIt’s set in magnificent countryside\"\"<\/p>\n

The house exterior was covered in a dull grey plaster, which took \u201cdays and days to hack off\u201d. A lean-to kitchen was knocked and replaced with a lofty rear extension housing a new open-plan kitchen\/dining\/living room with a vaulted ceiling.<\/p>\n

Light streams in through double sliding doors and an overhead Velux. All of the glazing is by Munster Joinery.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s all very high spec, it had to be to get the A2 energy rating,\u201d says Se\u00e1n, who adds that the cottage has \u201cfull air tightness throughout\u201d.<\/p>\n

\"\"\"VirtualVirtual staging of the kitchen<\/p>\n

He installed a heat recovery ventilation system and an air-to-water heat pump. \u201cIf you put in a heat pump without all of the rest of the stuff, you are wasting your time,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

A new staircase, bathrooms and kitchen were fitted.<\/p>\n

The exterior was freshly replastered and given a crisp white finish. It\u2019s the polished result of an experienced builder with ongoing projects across Cork and Kerry.<\/p>\n

Today, the once-bedraggled cottage, swallowed up in dense overgrowth, is a smartly presented traditional-style home, where each of four bedrooms (two on the ground floor) has an en suite.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"VirtualVirtual staging in bedroom\"\"\"VirtualVirtual staging of the lounge<\/p>\n

An upstairs bedroom also has a large walk-in wardrobe. Downstairs, there\u2019s a cosy lounge, as well as a utility and a guest loo.<\/p>\n

Outdoors has been cleared, and the house is now highly visible on an elevated 1.5-acre site, with woodland and mountain views.<\/p>\n

The renovations took eight months, and Se\u00e1n is hopeful the 167 sq m property will be bought by a family.<\/p>\n

Selling agent Ron Krueger of Engel & V\u00f6lkers says the Macroom bypass has made commuting far easier for families who want a rural base but work in Cork City or Killarney.<\/p>\n

\"\"\"\"<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re just 30 minutes from the Bishopstown roundabout on the outskirts of Cork City, and about the same to Killarney by car,\u201d the agent says. Macroom town is less than a 15-minute spin and Cork Airport is a 45-minute drive.<\/p>\n

Ballyvourney is near the Mullaghanish Mountains, where you\u2019ll find plenty of scenic trails. The River Sullane is nearby for fishing, and Macroom Golf Club is within easy reach. The guide price for Tom\u2019s Cottage is \u20ac535,000.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\n VERDICT: Fine example of how to turn a vacant, down-at-heel property into an attractive, energy-efficient family home.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"TOM\u2019S Cottage is so crisply presented that it\u2019s hard to believe the builder had to use a slash…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":178103,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[307,304,305,306,308,93,626,61,60],"class_list":{"0":"post-178102","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arts-and-design","8":"tag-arts","9":"tag-arts-and-design","10":"tag-artsanddesign","11":"tag-artsdesign","12":"tag-design","13":"tag-entertainment","14":"tag-house-prices-mortgages-estate-agents-cork-munster","15":"tag-ie","16":"tag-ireland"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/178102","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=178102"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/178102\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/178103"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=178102"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=178102"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=178102"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}