Ashmount House, a Georgian property in Clonygowan just across the Laois border, sold for €1.64 million on Thursday with much speculation on the identity of the new owner.
“It’s not often something like this comes up for sale in this area,” auctioneer Paddy Jordan told the packed room in the Tullamore Court Hotel on Thursday afternoon.
Bidding opened at €1 million and had crept up to €1.3 million when the bidding was briefly adjourned for Mr Jordan to take instructions from the vendor.
After that recess, action sped up with three bidders bidding steadily in increments of €10,000 as Mr Jordan coaxed them along with some aplomb.
Bidding began to hot up after that break and finished at €1.640,000.
Despite the best efforts of Mr Jordan to get the room to “fill that gap” there were no further bids.
The identity of the buyer remained a mystery as a representative was taking instructions over the phone and bidding on his/her behalf during the auction.
“He’s not a local anyway,” one person at the meeting declared afterwards, as no-one recognised the man acting on the buyer’s behalf.
“Well, we have a new neighbour,” another said.
A smaller portion of land, a separate 6 acre holding was withdrawn with a bid of €40,000 on it, with discussions to take place with the bidder.
The Ashmount property is 6 km north of Portarlington and includes a period, two-storey house.
The house – 2,500 square foot Georgian residence built in circa 1850 but with various extensions since – has been owned by the same family since the 1960s. It is on the edge of a 40-acre parcel south of the railway line that offers extensive road frontage along the Portarlington-Tullamore road. It is in good condition and has been completely rewired and plumbed in the last 11 years. The farmyard is beside the house but have separate entrances.
124.5 acres is north of the railway line – 87 acres are in pasture with a further 35 on forestry and 2.5 in Christmas trees. The forestry provides a premium of just under €7,500 per year. The 124.5 acre holding is well serviced by a farm road with the 87 acres divided into nine fields by a hedge network and comes complete with an existing crush and handling facilities.
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