4/39 Dalgety Street, St Kilda
$1.25 million-plus
3 bedrooms, 1 bathroom, 1 car space
Auction at 11.30am, December 3
Inspect on Saturday, 2pm-2.30pm
Abercromby’s 9864 5300, Michael Derham 0425 790 233
A converted coach house down a long, long green walkway is like a touch of England in the oldest part of St Kilda.
Its origins and parent mansion – a house that needed a big coach house at the back must have been large – are a bit unclear but that’s a mystery for the next owner to solve. Suffice to say, a lot of change has occurred since Dalgety Street was first settled in the 1860s.
But what a pretty sight this coach house is – weathered bricks, slate-tiled angled towers, a pretty porch and walls covered with creeper. Even the front door is elegant: tall black double doors topped by a Georgian-style half-arched window. If you’re a sucker for a great exterior and a bit of history, this sweet residence will have you at the front doors.
In the double doors is a wide entrance hall with a large powder room to the left and, to the right, the long open-plan living and dining room. This is the feature room of the old coach house and there are remnants of the 19th-century history but with plenty of room for more research and more revelations.
A huge box bay window is in the centre of the room and it offers a pretty outlook on to the front garden and also a door to outside. Raw bricks, tan carpet, period-style lighting and a few overhead beams are the simple look – with a timber staircase only partially dividing the room. Some buyers will want to paint the bricks to create a lighter, more contemporary look but others will love the ‘unchanged for a century’ look.
An open fireplace, and another of the Georgian half-arch windows, is at the far end of the room and there is also a third bedroom or study here. The surprise in the study/bedroom is a large cellar underneath accessed via a ladder.
Back at the other end of the living room is a large timber kitchen. It’s slightly dated but everything is in good condition and there’s plenty of storage and bench space.
Upstairs there are two bedrooms – the largest is semi-open, shielded from the corridor only by a curtain. This is a lovely room with pretty glass and timber built-in wardrobes and two angled windows.
The smaller bedroom is at the other end of the hallway, down a few steps, and has built-in wardrobes and an open fireplace. A large powder room outside the door offers potential for conversion to an en suite and this bedroom could then become the main.
As is, there is a large black and white bathroom, with shower and separate bath, next door.
This is a rare offering with room to update and improve but with charm and history already embedded.
Room for improvement: Time for renovation.
Need to know: Built in the mid-late 1800s. Last traded for $385,000, May 1992. Highest priced townhouse (past 12 months) $1,295,000, 52/167 Fitzroy Street, July 2016. Recent sales: $832,000 for 2/7 Inverleith Court, March 2016; $1.22 million for 2/251 Barkly Street, February 2016, and $1.1 million for 2/7 Marine Avenue, February 2016.