I went to see these apartments, fantastic location, good quality fittings etc, great bathrooms, but I would have a number of issues with them.
Bedrooms have a standard double bed with bedside lockers (only room for 1 in guest bed) and in most cases inadequate amount of fitted wardrobes and no space to add any. You could get a bed with drawers, but even with that there’s no where near enough storage for a couple.
Kitchens are small but appear to have enough presses, but when you look, 1 is a drawer unit, 4 are allocated for fridge, freezer, dishwasher and boiler. This leaves under the sink for bin, under the hob for pots, after that you only have maybe 4 small units for food crockery, utensils etc and very little worktop space, no where near adequate.
The apartments on the N11 are dual aspect. The master bedroom and living room with their balconies (many only big enough to stand on) face onto this noisy road. The other aspect if you are high enough and at the right end have spectacular views over to Howth, but only from their kitchen and spare bedroom windows.
The block going down Booterstown Ave and facing into the courtyard are quieter, with more wardrobes, kitchen units and proper balconies.
There is far too much wood, from the N11 you see some which is already discoloured and looks nasty, but all of the front is wood, while not yet in the same condition is on its way there. Irish weather does not suit external wood to this massive extent.
I have to agree with a lot of what you said. I went on Sunday afternoon to kick the tyres. Lots of activity, very busy but a say many were doing the same as me and weren't real buyers. Having said that, there were lots of red sold dots on the plans. Of course how many of these deposits turn into sales will be interesting but still, for 3 days activity it's promising.
Location wise it's very good. Close to transport (46A route, 10-15 min walk to Dart). Well established neighbourhood. Close to Stillorgan shopping centre, Blackrock, schools etc.
Good quality of finish (although kitchen appliances have yet to be fitted in most) through out. But overall I wasn't impressed. I hated the tiling in the bathrooms, it made it too dark and I felt I was in a cave. Sink was positioned way too low, you'd be bent over trying to use it.
Layout and sizing of rooms was very bad. The show bedrooms had the smallest beds you could get and even then there was barely walkaround room. Add a decent sized double and it would be tight. Limited wardrobe space and no room for chest of drawers.
Kitchens were tiny, very little counter space. Fine if you're the type of person who loves M&S meals, useless for anyone who does proper cooking.
Practically no storage space. Some apts had a cupboard that could take a hoover and an ironing board but that's about it.
Balconies on the N11 apts were tiny (in some cases just a 6 inch strip). Not that you'd want to sit out with all the traffic going by. But sound proofing appeared good, but you won't get a full picture until you move in and see if you can hear neighbours above on their wooden floors.
Wood everywhere, and already in some places weathered and need of TLC. Expect management fees to shoot up to rectify this after year one.
Overall, it's probably better than average, and some of the duplex apts are a decent size and seemed to be snapped up. I say this will sell out soon, but it wouldn't be for me.
