Ballycogley Castle in South Wexford makes €950,000

Described as “one of the nicest properties to come on the market in the area for some time”, Ballycogley Castle, Ballycogley, Co Wexford, sold under the hammer last week for €950,000.

Selling agent John Keane, Wexford, received a steady level of interest from local and distant farmers, as well as inquiries from Dublin and the UK. The property, which comes with the remains of Ballycogley Castle, is only 20 minutes from the ferry in Rosslare and stands on 77 acres of good-quality farmland.

A large crowd turned up to the Talbot Hotel, Wexford, for the auction, where John took an opening bid of €700,000. With the help of three bidders, the sale price jumped past the €800,000 guide price to €850,000, at which stage Ballycogley was declared on the market. Not stopping there, it took another €100,000 to finally see the hammer drop to €950,000 a man from Co Wexford. The underbidders included a farmer and a businessman with farming interests.

Given the buoyant demand for land in Co Wexford, the selling agent reports that he has a number of customers eagerly looking for similar type properties in the county.

Approached by a stone-walled tree-lined avenue, Ballycogley is a property that is not only steeped in history, but also features dual-purpose land, a refurbished two-storey over-basement Georgian residence, and a restored courtyard.

The current owners bought Ballycogley about 20 years ago and went about refurbishing the two-storey period residence.

This included a new roof, new wiring and new plumbing. It was guided in the region of €700,000 to €800,000 prior to auction.