Charlesland court: want to know about the area

prithwish

Hi,

Planning to buy a ground floor apartment in Charlesland court. I am curious to know about various aspects about the area like safety, break-ins, amenities, primary and secondary schools, special schools if any, supermarkets, commuting options to Dublin. Is there any known issue with the built quality of the Charlesland court apartments?

Any help is highly appreciated.

Regards.

Sunrise_Sunset

In my opinion Charlesland is a nice area to live in. There's a primary and secondary school in the direct area, and about 7 other primary schools and 2 or 3 other secondary schools in larger Greystones area. The estate was a Celtic Tiger build. Commuting - depends what part of Dublin you are commuting to. The 84X is a pretty good bus option for a lot of people. There's a Supervalu in the estate, and an Aldi within walking distance. There's also a nice cafe, pharmacy, GP surgery, Vet, salon, barber, a couple of take aways, a creche and a new gym in the estate. We have had no issues with safety/security and are living in the estate almost 7 years.

prithwish

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118583344#Comment_118583344

Thanks so much for your comments. I like to commute to Dublin 4 area everyday. Another question, is there any social housing related issue in that area? Regards.

Sunrise_Sunset

You can look up the 84X bus route, I believe it might go through Dublin 4. Or you can bus/cycle/drive to the dart station. I'm sure there's some social housing. For a point of reference, I'd know of one friend in the estate on HAP (that's the estate overall, not the Court), but obviously I'm not aware of everyone's situations.

2011

The build quality is very poor. Years ago I worked on many different homes throughout Charlesland (I’m an electrician). I really got to see how these houses were built and was appalled by the corners cut and general standard of wiring, plumbing, insulation, windows and general finish. These issues were far worse than I have seen in other houses built at that time (Celtic Tiger). The BER is of its time i.e. not great. Having said that, many residents have spent the money and long since dealt with these issues, so problems solved.

One thing to look out for: If the boiler hasn’t been replaced it will be on its last legs, so check for this.

Also note, a lot of the gas fires had to be disconnected on safety grounds.

The schools in the area are very good, but hrs to get into.

There was a spate of breakins for a while a few years ago, but this seems to have reduced quite substantially.

Plenty of supermarkets and nice places to eat out in Greystones which isn’t too far away.

My sister lives there with her family and they are very happy. They have fixed most of the issues but this work is still ongoing and expensive. Everyone living in the area seems to really like it, especially those with children.

Sunrise_Sunset

We've spent money on ours too. Previous owners didn't do a whole lot over the years except to convert the attic. We didn't mind, as preferred to renovate and make changes our own way. Any 15 year old place is going to need work done, and most owners won't update their boiler if they plan on moving, unless it's a necessity.

I think I know the apartment you are looking at. It looks to have the original kitchen and bathroom, so that might be something you'd consider changing upon moving in. Some owners have recently changed their windows, patio door and front door along there too and they look quite nice.

You might want to consider noise levels as the apartment is underneath a duplex. I don't know what that's like as I live in a different type of property.

As the above poster said, everyone who I know who lives here really likes it. Haven't heard any complaints at all. And we really like it here ourselves too.

prithwish

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118585236#Comment_118585236

Thanks for your comments. very helpful. As an electrician, can you please give an estimate how expensive could it be to replace the entire wiring of the apartment? Regards.

prithwish

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118585731#Comment_118585731

Hi, thanks again. Very useful discussion. yes, you can get the ad on daft and MyHomes site. Since you are already living there and did a refurbishment for your own house, any idea how much can it cost to replace the entire kitchen and bathroom, windows etc? Just an estimate would be really helpful. Also, does this get any flooding when it rains quite heavily? The apartment is in the ground floor.

Any idea how to get the information about the noise level in those types of apartments.

Regards.

2011

Hi,

Although I am a qualified electrician with many years experience working in that role in 2006 I returned to full time study to get an electrical engineering degree. I haven’t worked as an electrician since so my pricing may not be that accurate. Anyway depending on what you want I would expect to spend at least €8k to comply with the latest wiring standards (they recently changed). This price reflects the dramatic increase in cable costs in addition to modern needs (such as smart heating controls).

Note: A lot of repairs and redecorating will be required following the rewire. These costs are not included.

Regarding bathroom renovations I can give you some idea as I had to completely renovate mine, see link below,. My home was built by the same builders that built parts of Charlesland so my bathroom was the same appalling quality. This meant it required complete gutting. Expect to pay at least €12k for the main bathroom to get someone to supply and fit. En-suite would cost less. As you can see from the thread I did the work myself:

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058088839/complete-diy-bathroom-renovation/p1

Boiler upgrade starts at €2.5k.

New kitchen I would budget for €12k minimum .

Replacement of windows and doors will be around €8k

The above adds up but it is a good investment and will dramatically increase the property value.

I don’t know this particular property, perhaps much of this work is done.

Sunrise_Sunset

These apartments don't have many windows, I think you'd get it done cheaper than 8k personally. It's really just a front door, a patio door and two small back windows. We got a composite front door and 3 windows done for 4.5k. Our windows are bigger than the apartment ones. Our patio doors cost more than average cos of the style we chose.

Sunrise_Sunset

Also, these aren't things you need to do right away. Save to get things done as you can. TBH almost all my homeowner friends are doing one thing or another to their house at any time. Not just in Charlesland. Unless buying a brand new A rated home, it's to be expected. You finish one room and it's on to the next, and by the time all rooms are done, you're back to the start again. One of the "joys" of being a homeowner.

2011

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118587424#Comment_118587424

Completely agree, these are things you can do over a protracted period of time as and when the money is available. This is what I have been doing myself as my own home was built to the same standard. However, I think it is important that the OP understands the build quality from day one, even when the Celtic Tiger is taken into consideration.

prithwish

Hmm..so additional 40K is estimated to renovate it to some extent. I hope there is no pyrite or mica issue in this area! Do you ever heard about them in Charlesland?

2011

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118588585#Comment_118588585

No and I m sure I would have heard.

Sunrise_Sunset

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118587606#Comment_118587606

On a bit of a side note, what other estates in the area were built by the same builders? Or to the same standards/ during Celtic Tiger times?

prithwish

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118588603#Comment_118588603

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118585731#Comment_118585731

Thanks for your invaluable comments. These are really helpful to get an overall scenario of the place and the buildings. Just noticed another news clip from independent[dot]ie: https://www.independent.ie/regionals/braypeople/news/fortunes-fury-as-social-housing-gets-green-light-39887644.html

The land is just beside Charlesland court and Burnaby court. In Dublin, people generally try to avoid places near social housings since that causes many nuisances including dodgy behaviours, druggies, etc. It also affects property values in the adjacent areas. What's your views on the impact of the council decision on Charlesland area in the coming days due to a block of social housings?

2011

I have probably painted a worse picture that the situation is in terms of dealing with issues arising from build quality, so I went back and edited my posts. This is due to posting on my phone while in a que rather than waiting until I am back at my PC, my bad!

To clarify:

1) I was asked for my estimation of the cost of a rewire, as above I would expect around €8k. If it were my home I would be hopeful that I could address the wiring issues without a total rewire. One of the issues I would address is that the kitchens in have seen (in ground floor apartments) there was only one socket circuit which was shared with the kitchen area. This conflicts with national rules (now and at the time of build) which requires a minimum of two socket circuits dedicated for the kitchen. I also found there to be a lack of socket outlets generally. In addition I would upgrade the fuse board. This is something I would do in any house as there are new devices which are more mainstream now (not at the time) which provide enhanced protection. There are other electrical issues I have come across that are easier to resolve.

2) The price that I put above for the boiler upgrade was based on a boiler that I organized for a ground floor apartment in Charlesland. This is an A rated boiler, the manufacturer is Ideal. Incidentally, an issue with the plumbing that was easily rectified was that the toilet was flushing hot water!

3) Replacing a kitchen can cost a lot. However many on a budget just replace the doors and repair the carcases as reqquired (this is what I did in my own home). If I personally was replacing the entire kitchen I would budget for €12k as stated above, this would include for a complete redesign and new stone countertops. I am not a fan of the current layout.

4) I am arranging for triple glazed windows and composite doors to be installed in a similar sized property in Greystones, the cost is €8k. This home has two external doors and 5 windows. On reflection, I would expect this to cost more than a ground floor apartment in Charlesland as there are more windows, however the apartments have more expensive french doors. Obviously triple glazed would cost more, but personally I would only upgrade from double glazed to triple glazed.

5) The cost of the bathroom upgrade is very hard to put a number on. It really depends on what you want and how far you are prepared to go. As can be seen in my link above my bathroom was so poorly done resolving the issues was never going to be cheap. Leaks from my shower were so bad that some of the floor under my shower tray had rotted through completely. The materials alone cost me around €6k (I paid trade prices).

As above I bought a home which was built by some of the same builders that build many of the homes in Charlesland. I knew what to expect in terms of build quality (in particular wiring, plumbing, finish and insulation) and issues I would have to deal with. I purchased the house anyway as I liked the fundamentals which for me were: size, orientation, price, structural integrity and location. I resolve various issues over a protracted time period as and when I have the money. I have no regrets.

Sunrise_Sunset

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118589416#Comment_118589416

Social is housing is going to be everywhere. You cannot avoid it. You will have similar issues purchasing in any other location.

2011

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118589721#Comment_118589721

We have social housing. No issues whatsoever.

Sunrise_Sunset

OP, it might be a good idea to see what else is out there in your budget. My bet is that you'll find Charlesland is an excellent option.

prithwish

Thanks both of you. Sale agreed!

Can you please let me suggest a reputable structural surveyor/snagger and solicitor in Charlesland/Greystone area? Thanks.

2011

Best of luck with it!

kerrybyrne

Hi @prithwish - just wondering if you bought in the end and are happy there?

We are currently looking at a three bed house in Charlesland and wondering about build quality and area. :)

lakeroad

I wouldn’t take 2011 comments seriously. If you look at his past threads he’s always been highly critical of Charlesland. Once query appears he jumps on it. As he stated he is an Electrical Engineer and previously an Electrician. Both professions with minimal understanding of construction and certainly not competent or qualified to be giving advice on construction standards. Take his comments with a pinch of salt.

2011

“Both professions with minimal understanding of construction and certainly not competent or qualified to be giving advice on construction standards.”

Believe or not anyone that has over 30 years full time experience in the construction industry will have gained more understanding of construction than most!

If you look at my threads on the DIY forum you will see what ability I have as they include multiple photos. Example:

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058088839/complete-diy-bathroom-renovation/p1

For the record I have been critical of the builders that built my house too!

What qualifications and experience do you have in this area?

prithwish

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120558428#Comment_120558428

Sorry for late reply. I noticed it just now. Charlesland is a lovely area. I have not much complaint about its built. For me till everything is fine. But when you buy an old house, you must be mentally prepared for renovation/modernization.