Dublin’s Camden Street is witnessing a quiet revolution above its shops as landlords and business owners seek to address the city’s housing shortage by converting unused space into residential apartments. Jas Rait and his wife, Tanya Comber, recently completed a significant project at their premises, transforming the upper floors of their building into three apartments while continuing to operate their cloud computing business, Right Click and Right Cloud, below.
The couple, who first rented the property in 2001 and purchased it a decade later, found themselves needing to reconfigure their workspace as their business expanded to a team of eight. This prompted them to explore the potential of the underutilized space above their shop. “We had architects, quantity surveyors, fire safety consultants, engineers, steel consultants – you have to have those people on board if you want to do a project like this,” Comber explained. Their architect, Ken Meehan, specialized in conservation projects, and builder Conor Grealis navigated the challenges of a build on a busy street with limited access.
Construction, which began in October 2024, involved adding a four-story extension to the rear of the building and a new floor to the existing structure. The resulting apartments, available for rent from February, now house 14 residents. The project addressed significant issues with the original structure. The existing apartment, described by Comber as having “four bedrooms, but really it was three bedrooms with a tiny little room that would only fit a small bed,” was in disrepair. She recalled frequent roof leaks during storms and pervasive cooking smells drifting into the shop below. The building also suffered from poor insulation, requiring heating systems to run for hours with limited effect.
The renovated building now features a 3,000 sq ft three-bedroom apartment, a two-bedroom penthouse with city views, and a two-bedroom duplex. Garrett Dillon Kitchens in Dungarvan supplied the kitchens, fulfilling the couple’s desire for a design that moved away from traditional cream units. “We just said, let’s move a bit funky. This is Camden Street after all,” Comber said. Tiles were sourced from XO Tile, located nearby, and flooring from Brooks builders’ suppliers in Bluebell.
Despite the bustling street life below, the apartments are remarkably quiet. “It’s actually really peaceful here, completely Zen,” Comber noted. A key design principle was creating living spaces they themselves would want to inhabit, prioritizing outdoor space and room size. All apartments include balconies, with the penthouse boasting the largest outdoor area.
Rait and Comber utilized the government’s Living City initiative, receiving a €200,000 tax break – the maximum available at the time. However, they emphasized that the financial benefits did not cover the full cost of the project. The initiative’s maximum tax relief was subsequently increased to €300,000 in October’s budget. They also acknowledged the Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant, which offers grants of up to €140,000, but noted that any grant received is deducted from qualifying expenditure for the Living City tax relief.
Rait cautioned that the project’s economic viability would be questionable if undertaken today, citing escalating material costs and labor expenses. “We’ve been here for so long that for us to stay here and invest for the next few decades is fine. But if you’re an investor and you’ve got 8 per cent [interest] on commercial finance, and you’re looking to do this to flip it, then it doesn’t make sense.” He believes that more incentives are needed to encourage small landlords to undertake similar conversions, stating, “Unfortunately, the sums don’t add up.”
Despite the financial challenges, Rait and Comber expressed their commitment to Camden Street and their satisfaction with securing the building’s future while contributing to the city’s rental supply. “We are here for good and we are not going anywhere,” Comber affirmed. “There is still a great sense of community here on the street and we know so many people. We love this place.”
