Is this €1.2m Ballinskelligs farmhouse the smartest home in Ireland?

Reenroe, Ballinskelligs

Ballinskelligs, South Kerry

€1.2m

Size

270 sq m (2906 sq ft)

Bedrooms

3

Bathrooms

3

BER

B2

AS a nation hooked on both quiz shows and property TV, here's a pitch for a new programme: Ireland's Smartest Home.

Instead of trying to find the country's most cerebral human (RTÉ's Ireland's Smartest) we could instead strive to identify the most tech-savvy dwelling, where appliances and devices are remotely controlled from anywhere on the planet with an internet connection, banishing the lifelong fear of bankruptcy on account of leaving the immersion on, or, of burning the house down because someone left the iron plugged in.

A possible candidate for this kind of home brainiac programme – which would also involve a flawless demonstration by the owner of their smart home's efficacy – is the standout house featured here.

It's in Reenroe, in sublime Ballinskelligs, Co Kerry, and if it looks familiar, it's because it appeared in Property and Home less than two years ago.

It looked quite exceptional then, but it's even more fabulous now, following a litany of expensive upgrades by new owners, with a strong focus on creating a seriously smart home.

The owners’ business background played into this. Marc and Maggie Hatton are MD and company secretary respectively of UK-based MCS, a company that specialises in installing and maintaining high tech audio/visual set ups in luxury car dealerships that go well beyond screens providing information and promotional displays. They can create an almost theatrical experience for the car-buyer, through use of light batons, smoke, lasers, a set playlist - you name it - whatever the dealership requests. With that kind of award-winning A/V background, is it any wonder that their Reenroe home gin bar is better than anything you’d see in a nightclub, an arresting display of illuminated gin bottles that look good enough to, well, not drink, because you’re simply loathe to spoil the effect?

Clever use of LED is everywhere in the South Kerry home, from the illuminated shelving in the spanking new kitchen with its quartz work surfaces, pop-up power and charging and bespoke LED accent lighting, to kitchen storage presses which also light up automatically making it easy to find things.

Just about every lighting trick you could think of, designed to enhance your surroundings and make life easier (from "full task" kitchen lighting when cooking dinner to ambient lighting when the guests arrive) can be found here. What's more, physical light switches aren't necessary - it's all on a Rako smart controlled digital, touch-panel system.

The smart-home elements go well beyond the lighting. There are smart locks (you can lock up remotely); smart underfloor heating (can turn on remotely); even smart motorised blinds in some rooms that come down at sunset and open at sunrise. As Marc says "there's a hell of a lot of smart tech".

"Everything that could be smartified has been, but it's not pointless stuff, it's useful add-ons to make life smoother," he says. He's happy to smooth the way for new owners too, as the house sale includes an iPad mini, with all systems pre-installed and passwords made available.

Outside of the massive tech investment (undertaken during a significant upgrade of the internet connection to 4G, with 5G due later this year), the couple ploughed serious money into internal fit-outs and redecorating. All of the internal doors were replaced, a new kitchen was installed with top-of-the-range solid brass Dowsing and Reynolds fixtures and fittings, bathrooms were stripped out and given a de-luxe re-fit (Tubs and Tiles in Tralee had a role); the main bedroom and dressing room were made over, part of a barn was converted into a yoga studio, with separate areas fitted out as a gym and to accommodate an ice bath.

Externally, significant hard landscaping was undertaken, with the creation of a top-of-garden viewing terrace and the importation of 32 tonnes of Killorglin stone to augment/replace, some stone-covered landscape.

With a vista to die for from the rear garden, they lowered the sea-view fence to improve an already spectacular view straight across Ballinskelligs Bay towards Coomakista and Hogs Head. They installed a full dog proof fence too for the safety of their two beloved pooches, Dexter and Ruby.

Much of the work was carried out with the help of hardworking locals, the couple says. Everything that was done over the past 18 months was with a view to making Reenroe Marc and Maggie's permanent home, one that had already undergone a major transformation when the previous owner brought in retired UK architect Rod Robinson c2007 to add a fantastic modern wing to a traditional farmhouse.

He created some standout features in the process, like the circular staircase in the main open-plan living area, set against a wall of Valentia slate (done by a locally-based stonemason from Yorkshire), and the steel bridge linking two separate sections of an overhead mezzanine, where a giant apex window at one end drinks in those views.

That previous owner has also carried out considerable insulation work to create a highly energy-efficient home with geothermal heating and an excellent B2 energy rating.

Marc and Maggie had every intention of enjoying their new home, divided between cosy farmhouse wing and bright, high-ceilinged, contemporary living, not to mention the superb setting and half-acre of expertly landscaped grounds.

It was there for their two sons, Will and Alex, to enjoy too, when taking a break from successful web-based leisure businesses (Will founded The Broke Backpacker, a highly successful global budget-travel website, www://thebrokebackpacker.com, while Alex, an ecologist and scuba divemaster operates divingsquad.com). Ultimately though, success has got in the way.

"After 23 years with MCS, I was looking at taking a lesser role in running the business, but ironically, it really took off when we moved here and I found myself going back to the UK more and more often," says Marc.

"Maggie was going back and forth too and with the two dogs, it made things tricky.

"Although our plan had been to work remotely, it was not viable to be part time, and while I have a great team in the UK, it still needs an MD to make top level decisions and to steer things in the right direction.

"You could say I had a bit of a go at retiring, and it's a damn shame it didn't work out, but for good reasons," Marc laughs.

And so Ron Krueger of Engel & Volkers the agent that sold the couple Reenroe for €865,000 in 2021 (from a guide price of €675,000) is back selling now on their behalf, with a guide price this time of €1.2m.

As per the last market outing, he's expecting wide-ranging interest in the singular home.

"I'm very much expecting local and international interest given the quality of the location and finish of the property," he says, adding that the house lends itself to use as both a permanent residence of a high-class holiday home.

VERDICT: Outstanding location, fit-out and finish at this Reenroe home. Could be where the smart money is.

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