Is it worth it?

What it is: A basic traditional single-storey “linear” cottage with a two-storey granite ruin attached. The cottage was inhabited until four years ago, but judging by the well-watered grass flooring, the attached stone house hasn’t had a roof over its head for more than 40 years. The cottage itself has three rooms, including a bathroom. The larger cut-stone house is a former farmhouse attached to the land to the rear, though it probably once sat on a holding of several acres. Today, the parcel of land includes a decent half-acre. The village of Ballyknockan was once known as Granite City for its 200-year tradition of quarrying and stone-cutting, so the house is historically representative of the area and therefore worth a quality refurbishment.

The problems: The granite building is little short of a ruin. Much of the stonework is intact but the gables appear to be crumbling from the top down. At least €150,000 will be needed to make the most of its potential. If you intend to live in the cottage and supervise the work you’ll want central heating, although the previous dwellers got by with a solid- fuel stove. Given that this is a mammoth restoration job and just a few granite blocks shy of a build from scratch, be prepared to spend a good part of the year in close proximity to the builders.