Moving To Ireland

[Wurzel Of Highbridge]

Well at 12pm I will have spent my third week in Ireland. (doesn't time go quick..) I will bee keeping this thread updated from time to time and also answer questions that anyone might like to ask.

I lived in Cornwall, Plymouth and Dover. Ideally we would have moved to somerset, but realistically commuting an hour to Bristol to work each day is not a nice proposition, neither are the somerset house prices.

In the end we decided to move to Galway, there are many IT jobs and engineering jobs here, the houses are cheaper than the UK and I find the general populous more inviting. Seems to be less chavs, single mothers and boomers.

So far so good. We settled on renting a moderate house in Moycullen which is a lovely area of Connemara. Much nicer than Dover, possibly nicer than Cornwall!

We have a 12 month rental agreement, so will be either buing a house that needs some work and will do this over the next 12 months, or we will buy next year. Prices are still falling so we might save another 10%.

General myths that need busting.

1. The food is no more expensive than the UK (Aldi, Lidil, Tesco etc..)
   
2. The tax is around the same
   
3. Pertol is around the same Diesel is cheaper
   
4. The roads are not as bad as they say, going into the countryside can get interesting though,
   
5. Rain - well it has been wet, however it has been exceptionally wet in the UK & Ireland this year.
   
6. Broadband - Mobile coverage is excellent 3mb down / 1mb up. Airwave, fixed line and cable in some areas

Edited July 4, 2012 by khards

[okaycuckoo]

Good luck.

Beautiful country west of Moycullen. Try Clifden - when the sun comes out in summer it's like the Greek islands.

Whatever you do, be wary of solicitors & accountants west of the Shannon. Good company, but corrupt to the bone.

[Executive Sadman]

Though diesel is a bit cheaper, arent most the motorways/dual carriageways toll roads?

Are there any property taxes whatsoever? Didnt they take to the streets when an annual property tax of around 100euros was proposed recently?

Been looking at the allsop auction a couple of days back. decent homes outside of dublin are CHEAP now!

[Venger]

We have a 12 month rental agreement, so will be either buing a house that needs some work and will do this over the next 12 months, or we will buy next year. Prices are still falling so we might save another 10%.

Good luck khards. I don't know anything about what it is to live in Ireland from a UK perspective. I'll be interested to see how it goes for you in the months ahead. Had a quick look on Daft.ie and prices in that area still look expensive, but perhaps that's because it remains one of the preferred areas?

Have you secured a position of employment?

[Wurzel Of Highbridge]

Though diesel is a bit cheaper, arent most the motorways/dual carriageways toll roads?

I have only encountered two toll roads and they are located between Galway and Dublin. I think the toll is around 2 euro per go. Nice stretch of road tho as there are almost no cars on it. You have to be careful of the Garda (police)

Are there any property taxes whatsoever? Didnt they take to the streets when an annual property tax of around 100euros was proposed recently?

Yes, there is a 100 euro property taqx. I think that my landlord pays this?

Been looking at the allsop auction a couple of days back. decent homes outside of dublin are CHEAP now!

Compared to places in the UK, very cheap.

Had a quick look on Daft.ie and prices in that area still look expensive, but perhaps that's because it remains one of the preferred areas?

Moycullen is comparatively expensive when compared to Athenry for example. But it is a great area, so it will be more expensive, also the supply of housing is more restricted in Connemara than other areas.

Have you secured a position of employment?

Yes, found a job in IT before I moved here.

[swissy_fit]

What's the deal with healthcare for foreigners living in Ireland?

[Wurzel Of Highbridge]

There is basic state healthcare like the UK. The company I work for provides private health insurance, that is the norm.

It costs 50 euros to visit the GP and 100euros for A&E if you have not been referred. In a way I think that this is a good thing because it keeps the riffraff and the hypochondriacs out thus saving the tax payer some money.

Under 6 year olds are free. Pensioners are free and card holders are free.

The amount I pay in PSI is less than I was paying for national insurance, so I suppose it balances out somehow.

Might even be saving myself a few quid in the long run.

[swissy_fit]

There is basic state healthcare like the UK. The company I work for provides private health insurance, that is the norm.

It costs 50 euros to visit the GP and 100euros for A&E if you have not been referred. In a way I think that this is a good thing because it keeps the riffraff and the hypochondriacs out thus saving the tax payer some money.

Under 6 year olds are free. Pensioners are free and card holders are free.

The amount I pay in PSI is less than I was paying for national insurance, so I suppose it balances out somehow.

Might even be saving myself a few quid in the long run.

That sounds as perfect as could possibly be expected, well done the Irish.

Odd how there is no one country with sensible policies for everything.

[Democorruptcy]

There is basic state healthcare like the UK. The company I work for provides private health insurance, that is the norm.

It costs 50 euros to visit the GP and 100euros for A&E if you have not been referred. In a way I think that this is a good thing because it keeps the riffraff and the hypochondriacs out thus saving the tax payer some money.

Under 6 year olds are free. Pensioners are free and card holders are free.

The amount I pay in PSI is less than I was paying for national insurance, so I suppose it balances out somehow.

Might even be saving myself a few quid in the long run.

I hope the GPs have a good diagnosis strike rate or do you only pay once for the the same problem, even if it takes repeat visits?

[Wurzel Of Highbridge]

Re: GP's. I have no idea. The last time I went was in 2003

[Argoed]

I hope the GPs have a good diagnosis strike rate or do you only pay once for the the same problem, even if it takes repeat visits?

And you pay the GP in cash and watch it quickly disappear into the top left hand drawer of his desk. Not only the Greeks at it !

[Argoed]

Well at 12pm I will have spent my third week in Ireland. (doesn't time go quick..) I will bee keeping this thread updated from time to time and also answer questions that anyone might like to ask.

I lived in Cornwall, Plymouth and Dover. Ideally we would have moved to somerset, but realistically commuting an hour to Bristol to work each day is not a nice proposition, neither are the somerset house prices.

In the end we decided to move to Galway, there are many IT jobs and engineering jobs here, the houses are cheaper than the UK and I find the general populous more inviting. Seems to be less chavs, single mothers and boomers.

So far so good. We settled on renting a moderate house in Moycullen which is a lovely area of Connemara. Much nicer than Dover, possibly nicer than Cornwall!

We have a 12 month rental agreement, so will be either buing a house that needs some work and will do this over the next 12 months, or we will buy next year. Prices are still falling so we might save another 10%.

General myths that need busting.

1. The food is no more expensive than the UK (Aldi, Lidil, Tesco etc..)

2. The tax is around the same

3. Pertol is around the same Diesel is cheaper

4. The roads are not as bad as they say, going into the countryside can get interesting though,

5. Rain - well it has been wet, however it has been exceptionally wet in the UK & Ireland this year.

6. Broadband - Mobile coverage is excellent 3mb down / 1mb up. Airwave, fixed line and cable in some areas

Lucky man. I lived in Bushypark for a few years and know Moycullen well (is Frank Clancy's garage still there?) you have some of the best scenery in Europe on your doorstep and it's still underpopulated (you're likely to be the only one on the beach in Roundstone) and as the Irish say the rain there is always "soft".

Used to be a hint of a Republican tinge in Galway but I'd be surprised if that still exists.

It might be a bit pricier than the Uk (God know the price of Guinness these days) but the improvement in the quality of life will be worth it. Good luck.

[Spot]

I will bee keeping this thread updated from time to time

Time for an update?

[Kilham]

I would be interested in knowing how it's working out as well, not looking forward to yet another year sitting here watching prices being propped up.

[Wurzel Of Highbridge]

It has now been 6 months and things are going well for us. The OH has secured a job in a call center which was a relief, but there seems to be plenty of work here in the City compared to the outer southeast of England (Dover, Margate, Ashford, etc..). There is very little work outside of the city in the smaller towns (as to be expected).

Since March last year there has been a coordinated attempt to ramp up the market with lots of media reports and selective reporting of figures, that said it looks like central Dublin 'house' prices have stopped falling, this is primarily due to lack of family houses in the City. The Dublin market for flats is still falling / continuing to fall due to oversupply.

The rest of the country: I guess as most people are aware that real prices have lost around 50% since 2006. All I can say is that it must have been like it now is in London where prices look crazy everywhere.

The average asking price over here in Galway is around €200k so around £160k. You can get a reasonable starter home in the city for around €000k (example 1 Example 2)or a detached for €175k

We are currently looking at making an offer on a house, we are not sure if prices will fall further but at we like the location and the house. In regard to housing moving here has opened up many options to us, where as where we lived in Dover prior to moving here there were no options other than ex BTL terraced houses. We now have the choice of many hundreds of different house and place to live - freedom! In comparison the UK felt like a dictatorship - You are under 30, therefore you must live in said shitty flat/terrace/other unsuitable housing.

We recently had a budget that introduces property tax, which averages out at around .€300 per year. I have no problem with this as most of the money goes towards local services such as roads, schools etc.

So far, so good. We have not encountered any serious issues except for car tax, but this depends on what you drive. Unfortunatly my car has a 2.8 V6 engine which costs €1400 per year in road tax or £600 in the UK. Needless to say I will be changing to something lass fashionable and more economical like Renault Megane 1.5DCI. Diesel is around 8c cheaper than petrol. €1.56 petrol and €1.48 for diesel.

I guess the nice thing about living and working in Ireland is that I have managed to escape the British Chav and pop factor culture that has been building for the last 20 years. People here are much friendlier and sociable, you will always find people in the pub talking and enjoying themselves.

For anyone thinking of moving here I would say go for it, if you don't like it you can easily move back. this is the philosophy we moved here with and quickly realized that there was nothing to move back to the UK for. In a way we have an advantage that our family is small and we did not move here with any children. The outcome may vary for people with close families and or children, but I would say that if you are thinking of moving abroad anywhere then do it this year (before the £ collapses ) If you don't like it then move back next year. Take a little risk every now and then.

[dangermaus]

Good to hear, Ireland is on the list of places we are considering when mrs Dangermaus finishes her nursing degree in 2 years.

[Carabansity]

This from one of my Irish Cousins

and this...

A Little Irish humour, originally posted by Jay Donnan:-

So this is for the benifit of all my friends who are confused or alarmed by the recent images being broadcast around the world, given that we are now 15 years into the peace process..

The capital of Ireland is Dublin . It has a population of a million people, all of whom will be shopping in Newry this afternoon. They travel to Newry becaus...e it is in the North, which is not part of Ireland, but still pay in Euros.

Under the Irish constitution, the North used to be in Ireland , but a successful 30-year campaign of violence for Irish unity ensured that it is now definitely in the UK. Had the campaign lasted any longer the North might now be in France.

Belfast is the capital of Northern Ireland . It has a population of half a million, half of whom own houses in Donegal. Donegal is in the north but not in the North. It is in the South. No, not the south, the South.

There are two parliaments in Ireland . The Dublin parliament is called the Dáil, (pronounced "Doyle"), an Irish word meaning a place where banks receive taxpayers' money. The one in Belfast is called Stormont, an Anglo-Saxon word meaning 'placebo', or deliberately ineffective drug.

Their respective jurisdictions are defined by the border, an imaginary line on the map to show fuel launderers where to dump their chemical waste and bi-products. Protestants are in favour of the border, which generates millions of pounds in smuggling for Catholics, who are totally opposed to it. Travel between the two states is complicated because Ireland is the only country in the world with two M1 motorways. The one in the North goes west to avoid the south and the one in the South goes north to avoid the price of drink!

We have two types of democracy in Ireland . Dublin democracy works by holding a referendum and then allowing the government to judge the result. If the government thinks the result is wrong, the referendum is held again. Twice in recent years the government decided the people's choice was wrong and ordered a new referendum. Belfast democracy works differently. It has a parliament with no opposition, so the government is always right. This system generates envy in many world capitals, especially Dublin .

Ireland has three economies - northern, southern and black. Only the black economy is in the black. The other two are in the red.

All versions of the IRA claim to be the real IRA but only one of them is the Real IRA. The North's biggest industry is the production of IRAs. Consequently, we now have the Provisional, Continuity and Real IRA. The Real IRA is by far the most popular among young graffiti writers simply because it is the easiest to spell.

I trust this clarifies things and has answered many previously unanswered questions for you

[Spot]

My missus is originally from Donegal and we occassionally idly talk about moving back there and every so often i'll have a browse at the property available there.

During the "boom" I was shocked at how much building was occurring and wondering who the hell was buying it as the prices went crazy.

It's been a while since I looked at any Irish property websites but had a look last night and JEEZ ! serious HPC !

Some properties i'd seen a few years ago were still available but now massively reduced, ie: from 1,000,000 euros down to 400,000.

Admittedly that was the largest drop I saw, but a lot of stuff was showing up as being reduced by about 200,000 euros. Fek !

Saw one place, recently refurbished, not far from a beautiful beach, 9 bedrooms, 6 acres of land with a tennis court selling for what my house is supposedly "worth" in Solihull.

Pity there's naff all work for me to do out there....

[Wurzel Of Highbridge]

This from one of my Irish Cousins

and this...

Quality.. Just about sums it all up.

[GreenWarwick]

Quality.. Just about sums it all up.

Greetings from East coast of Ireland. Delighted to hear all going well for you in Galway. Lived near your new home for a few years when first came back from UK, nice spot. You hit the nail on the head re the vested interests and their concerted efforts to ramp up an ever decreasing Irish housing market.There has been a change in focus recently, with an attempt to sell the notion that "good" areas (affluent parts of Dublin and Galway Cities) are holding their values. Personally I think this is nonsense. Some useful debate and monitoring of price drops on Politics.ie below:

http://www.politics.ie/forum/economy/184385-prediction-15-housing-price-jump-next-12-months.html #

http://www.politics.ie/forum/economy/203406-truth-about-property-market.html

[okaycuckoo]

Better Irish humour:

[Spoony]

My missus is originally from Donegal and we occassionally idly talk about moving back there and every so often i'll have a browse at the property available there.

During the "boom" I was shocked at how much building was occurring and wondering who the hell was buying it as the prices went crazy.

It's been a while since I looked at any Irish property websites but had a look last night and JEEZ ! serious HPC !

Some properties i'd seen a few years ago were still available but now massively reduced, ie: from 1,000,000 euros down to 400,000.

Admittedly that was the largest drop I saw, but a lot of stuff was showing up as being reduced by about 200,000 euros. Fek !

Saw one place, recently refurbished, not far from a beautiful beach, 9 bedrooms, 6 acres of land with a tennis court selling for what my house is supposedly "worth" in Solihull.

Pity there's naff all work for me to do out there....

That's the trouble. To the OP I consider £175K euros for a detached in your area to be still overpriced, its not much different from the north of England really. Jobs are scarce there too. But glad you are doing well out there and do let us know of any updates to your story. I am fed up with the UK even more so as there seems to be no end to this madness from Osbourne. As some of my family have put it "you could be waiting forever". Ireland is great nice people, chilled way of life but its the lack of work and poor weather that is a shame.

But Spain has the weather but has 30% unemployment with a 30% HPC. Ireland has 14% unemployment with a 50% HPC in some areas

Edited April 2, 2013 by Spoony

[swissy_fit]

That's the trouble. To the OP I consider £175K euros for a detached in your area to be still overpriced, its not much different from the north of England really. Jobs are scarce there too. But glad you are doing well out there and do let us know of any updates to your story. I am fed up with the UK even more so as there seems to be no end to this madness from Osbourne. As some of my family have put it "you could be waiting forever". Ireland is great nice people, chilled way of life but its the lack of work and poor weather that is a shame.

But Spain has the weather but has 30% unemployment with a 30% HPC. Ireland has 14% unemployment with a 50% HPC in some areas

The law regarding repossessions is due to change in the summer and the EU are pressuring Irish banks to start the cleanup, so more repos should start coming onto the Irish market from about the end of the year.

That 50% HPC could go a lot higher in places, though I guess areas with work will do better.

[motch]

just had a quick look on rightmove, some of those places out in the country are peanuts compared to Mainland UK.

[Wurzel Of Highbridge]

If anyone is interested there is a bunch of auction stuff come on today, also the Allsops auction is on, but honestly that one is full of crap.

http://www.odonnjoyce.com/nextauction

We are still looking for a house (kind of) as the one we had our deposit the buyer pulled out at the last minute before signing contracts - blessing is disguise?