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Look inside: Waterloo Road Victorian offers enthralling vista for €2.85m

Look inside: Waterloo Road Victorian offers enthralling vista for €2.85m

Irish Times10-07-2025
Address
:
20 Waterloo Road, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4
Price
:
€2,850,000
Agent
:
DNG
View this property on MyHome.ie
Looking out through the attic window at number 20
Waterloo Road
is quite the experience. The sheer height of this three-storey over-basement Victorian giant comes as a surprise as you don't realise how far up you have gone to reach the top as you take it floor by floor. Much time could be spent taking in the views from the house's roof-level vantage point. From the beautiful old stonework on the neighbouring period properties on surrounding roads to the Gothic architecture of St Bart's church in the distance,
Dublin 4
looks pretty fine on a summer's morning.
Waterloo Road is just minutes away from the main city streets, yet it doesn't feel like a busy run-through. The road is wide and tree-lined, with the houses set back, allowing for privacy and peace. And peace is one thing you notice in number 20. It is surprisingly quiet inside, even in the rooms at the front of the house. The sash windows are original but have been restored using methods that carefully balance tradition and functionality.
The five-bedroom house, extending to 325sq m (3,498sq ft), is entered through the original front door that looks as good as new following a recent restoration. Off the hallway, with its original coving, centre rose and framed archway, is the diningroom. This room overlooks the front garden and has a tiled cast-iron fireplace, ornate mouldings and mirrored shutters that add a bit of glitz to dinner parties.
Entrance hall
Diningroom
Chandelier, centre rose, and coving
Behind this, at the back of the house, is the kitchen with solid timber units. The owners, who have lived here for over 30 years, joke that if the TV show Friends can have a home where they can step out of a window and on to a balcony, so can they. They are referring to the large sash window in the kitchen that is low enough to allow one to comfortably step out and on to a raised terrace. Large enough for a table and chairs to enjoy a morning coffee, the sunny spot has steps down to the garden.
READ MORE
Kitchen
Raised terrace
Back in the house, on the first-floor return there are double doors that open into an elegant study. Up on the first floor itself are the formal reception rooms. The drawingroom is exactly what one expects from a home of this stature, with stunning cornicing and centre rose, an open marble fireplace and the original wooden floor. Double doors open into the livingroom with blue walls and carpet adding to the character. The room is less formal than its neighbour, but no less impressive with its original features.
Study
Drawingroom
Livingroom
There's a second chance to step outside from another sash window on the second-floor return to a small, tiled terrace – a great spot for listening to concerts at the nearby Aviva Stadium on a still night, according to the owners.
There are three bedrooms and a bathroom on the second floor, and a staircase that takes you up to the converted attic. This space has a large, bright room due to the installation of two Velux windows that offer the best views in the house, and a bathroom, as well as plenty of space left in the eaves for storage.
Bedroom
Bedroom
Bathroom
The accommodation at number 20 continues in the basement where there are two more large rooms with one currently being used as a bedroom and the other, that opens out to the garden, as a family room. There is also a new bathroom at this level and a utility under the granite steps, with a door out to a terrace at the front of the house.
The south-east-facing rear garden is mostly laid in lawn with tall birch trees and solid granite walls adding to the privacy. This peaceful city oasis has a paved patio at the back and a sunken terrace just outside the house with the balcony above providing cover on a rainy day.
Rear garden
Sunken patio
Number 20, which is Ber-exempt, had a new boiler installed in recent months and the garden level has a damp-proof course to protect against moisture. It is on the market through DNG with a guide price of €2.85 million.
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