The answer to a renter’s prayer – affordable homes within reach of Dublin

The address may be Kildare, but Celbridge and its surrounding areas are considered part of the Dublin market by estate agencies. On a good day, a drive into the city takes 25 minutes so it doesn’t exactly earn the commuter label anymore.

On the outskirts of the village is Oldtown Woods. The development by Cork-based O’Flynn Group was first launched on to the market in late 2020. On offer to date have been semi-detached houses, but this week sees the launch of 23 duplexes and apartments at the scheme.

Hogan Architects, also from Cork, thought outside the box when designing these units. Instead of the usual layout of apartments on the ground floor and duplexes above, they decided to put the duplexes on the first two floors with the apartments overhead. This means that the duplexes are more like a traditional house with a front door on the ground floor leading straight into the hallway, rather than up a flight of steps.

The two-bed duplexes have a floor area of 883sq ft, with prices starting at €350,000. They are ideal for first-time buyers who have been priced out of the house market but are looking for the next best thing. They have an open-plan kitchen/living/dining room with a small garden to the rear. Upstairs there are two double bedrooms and the main bathroom.

There are also one and two-bed apartments available. These are being built above the duplexes so there will be two duplexes then a third doorway into an internal staircase that leads up to the second floor to the apartments.

The one-beds have a floor area of 689sq ft and cost from €290,000, while the two-beds measure 818sq ft and are priced from €330,000.

The spec in these smaller units is the same as the houses, with hand-painted shaker-style kitchens from Wicklow-based Fitzgerald Kitchens and Bosch appliances. Each home also has an A2 energy rating.

This phase of apartments and duplexes is being sold off plan and won’t be ready until the fourth quarter of this year. Interest in the development so far has been very strong with just one four-bed semi left for sale for €525,000 from previous launches.

“Buyers so far are a mix of people who are based locally and also those who are renting in Dublin, with some paying about €2,500 in rent so their mortgage is going to be significantly lower than that,” says agent Frank McSharry from Lisney Sotheby’s International Realty.

“Remote working is absolutely having an impact on the market in Kildare too. We’ve got high-speed broadband here and a lot of the residents in the houses work at least part-time at home.”

The next few phases at Oldtown Woods will be more houses, with the final phase due to include more apartments.

Open viewings of the showhouse are tomorrow from 10.30am–11.30am.