Is it worth it?

What it is: To borrow a phrase, it is a vaguely building-shaped, overgrown pile of stones at the side of a road. It is two miles from Dunmore East and eight miles from Waterford city, beside Ballymacaw beach. The structure, or what is left of it, is made from granite and comes with a tiny parcel of land, more or less its own modest footprint, plus a yard or so around the edges of the building. By the looks of things, it’s been some time since there was a roof on the structure.

The problems: A severe shortage of space will restrict the pen of any architect, no matter how creative, when it comes to designing something viable to fit on the footprint of the existing structure. What is still there measures about 30ft x 20ft. Even if you managed to come up with the cleverest of space-maximising designs, there is no guarantee that Waterford county council will grant planning permission, which often depends on the existence of a previous residential building. The agent says a few architects have already had beard-tugging moments when viewing the property. There are no services in place, although the owner says the sewerage mains runs nearby. At best, according to the agent, the site would allow for the construction of a very small holiday home, but definitely not a permanent residence. With the beach so close, there is bound to be a large volume of human traffic on warm summer days.