Moving to Ireland- help!

[TheCats4245]

Hello

I have been offered a position with a company in Ireland. I would be able to work 99% remotely, so have pretty much complete freedom of where I could live, however they would like me to be in the country.

I have looked at house prices in Ireland, and it looks like properties with land are much cheaper than in England, which would be a massive plus for us, as we can’t afford any land where we live. The position itself sounds amazing, and I feel it would be brilliant for my career.

I have a number of concerns and questions- I have never been to Ireland, so have no idea what it’s like!

My main concerns are if my partner would be able to find a job easily (building supplies trade), as we would need two incomes still.

Secondly, we have an Irish friend who tells us that in general, Ireland can be a bit anti- English. We are from the very north of England, and have strong accents, so potentially people may struggle to tell where we are from in a short conversation, but we don’t want to be uncomfortable. I’m not sure if my friend is exaggerating, but when I’ve googled this I get very conflicting views, so I though best to ask actual opinions!

Thirdly, we are from a very rural area in England, and would like to move to a similar area in Ireland if possible- however I know when new people move to our community, the older people especially are very unfriendly, and it takes years for people to be accepted. Is this similar in rural Ireland?

Finally, can anyone recommend any areas to visit? I have a week to make a decision, so we have booked the ferry and are planning on going visiting as much as we can (obviously bearing in mind restrictions!)
Luckily I have a long notice period so time to move etc.

We would like somewhere rural, but within half an hour or so to a town with shops etc, but would consider somewhere slightly more built up. If possible we would like to be near the sea. I have horses, so somewhere with a good equestrian community would be a plus, for my partner, wherever we can get the cheapest land would be best as his hobby is growing vegetables.

Any suggestions? I was not expecting to be offered the job so this has all come out of the blue!

www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/leitrim-village-issues-appeal-for-people-to-come-live-there-1.3175871
I remember reading that this village was actively looking for people to move there and it was successful. Perhaps an area to look at, especially if you want to buy some land.
www.irishtimes.com/news/education/how-an-online-appeal-brings-new-lease-of-life-to-a-leitrim-village-1.3348757
As for being made feel welcome, it is probably no different to where you live now. Some people are more friendly than others. As for the accent, a neighbour of mine who has lived here for years has a strong Birmingham accent. A lot of the time I haven't a clue what he is saying. But he loves it here and plans on spending his life here.

First tip is to move this to Craicnet(the Irish board).
I think the west of Ireland would suit ye best if you want land and horses and the sea.
Galway is fab but more expensive, Mayo, Sligo, Clare also on the coast. More horsey people in Galway/Mayo I think but it's not my scene so someone more knowledgeable can help you with that.
There are people with anti-English attitudes but it's not universal.
I think it probably gets old when your here 20 years and still hearing the same old "jokes".
But I'm Irish with a large family and no-one in my family or friends group have ever actually said to me they sincerely have an issue with English people.
I have a friend with an English accent as she spent a lot of her childhood there and she has had no problems. Apart from the aforementioned "jokes".
You'll need advice from more local people on where you narrow down your search on the attitudes to "blow-ins" but I have family in the West and they just take people as they find them.
There a lot of Irish people with English accents who worked in England for their adult lives and moved home to retire so you won't stand out in the shop/pub or anything with your accent.
We are very nosey as a people especially in more rural areas so you will be asked where your from/why you moved etc.
Building is booming so your DH should have no trouble with work.
If I could move to the West I would and I'd go to either west Clare or near Westport in Mayo.
I'm a bit jealous actually

There was a thread recently about someone moving to Ireland & a few posters commented about anti-English sentiment they experienced.

Yes, you can definitely find anti-English sentiment here, sadly. It may be more observed in rural Ireland but that's not a given - many parts of rural Ireland have thriving artistic communities which tend to have a lot other nationalities, English & German being popular.

However, I know & work with plenty of English people, and never observed any such sentiment. I know many though work, my kids, exercise.

I think your criteria are really broad. I think not having any idea about Ireland or where would appeal makes it hard to suggest.

Every part of Ireland has its rural areas. If you want to have links to a major city, you could focus on Cork, Limerick, Galway & Dublin, all of which you could live rurally in, an hour or so away from the city, or less, barring Dublin.

Horses can be kept anywhere, big horsey places include Kildare or Galway.

I think you should have a really clear discussion with your employer about wfh & expectations. If it's 99% at home, why do they want you to be in Ireland? At the moment, we are working out remote working, post Covid, and there's a Government-led drive to implement blended working. How it will look ultimately is likely to evolve. I think you need to make sure you don't decide to live far away from the office & then are expected in more than you expect.

I think your husband would be fine finding work but I feel that area is quite a lot of word-of-mouth & might take a while.

Overall your current lifestyle sounds easy to replicate here - lots of opportunities to live rurally as you describe.

You might find useful information here:

https://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/movingcountry/movinggtoireland/#

You could consider Co Waterford, it's a beautiful county, not far from the ferry port in Rosslare. Dungarvan is a lovely seaside town. Co Wexford is also fab.
West Cork is another option - Clonakilty, Skibbereen etc but housing can be more expensive as it's very popular. There are lots of fellow British people living there.
Kilkenny is another lovely county but it's inland. Consider how frequently you will want to return to the UK - would being near to an airport/ferry port make life easier.
There is a lot of work available at the moment in the building trade so your husband should be fine - take a look at the online job adverts.
I lived in the UK myself and then returned to Ireland where I used to work in a multi national company where a lot of people moved from the UK to Ireland. My advice for what it's worth, and this is just my personal opinion, others might disagree, is to take a relaxed approach in getting to know people - Irish people are warm but cautious, they like to size you up before inviting you into their life! We don't do straight talking like other cultures - things are more nuanced and we prefer a more collaborative approach than being told what to do! And never gossip because everyone is somehow related! Ireland is increasingly becoming more international, you might encounter some anti British comments but they are usually somebody trying to be funny and failing badly.
I wish you lots of luck and hope it all goes well!

Killarney is gorgeous. As is Donegal.

@saltedcaramelchocolate. don't send Op to Leitrim 😂😂😂

I was going to recommend Leitrim!
We often holiday there.
It's lovely and I don't think the anti English thing exists like it used to.
Most communities are changing - it's not as friendly as it was in Ireland as it used to be not just an anti English thing.

We moved to Ireland from the UK 20 years ago (actually 22 next week!) and, despite our English accents, have only once encountered any anti-English feeling, and that was from a very elderly man in a pub one late night after many drinks had been taken :) His son apologised on his behalf. Other than that, people have been very welcoming, and we have some great friends here now.

Have a look at Westport, Co. Mayo - it's been described as the best place to live in Ireland - a small town on the coast, not too far from Castlebar, the county town. It's got a large Tesco, among other things! We live some 10 miles out of the town, in a very rural spot half a mile from the ocean. I'll never move anywhere else.

Just don’t make the mistake of naively thinking that because Ireland and the U.K. share a language, that it’s just U.K. Lite.

It’s a totally different culture, and that goes even further when you consider the Urban / Rural divide.

Your DH won’t have any trouble getting a job- I work in that area and there’s a skills shortage at the moment with people being able to command silly money.

Look at Co. Sligo OP. Miles and miles of coastline, surfing, horses, a small county so you can be 10 minutes drive from a town and still be in the country.

It’s got amazing food, local crafts, lots of local music and arts. It is like a smaller and to me much nicer version of Galway!

But I am biased, I live in Dublin and come from Co. Mayo. If I was to move to the country it would only ever be to the Atlantic coast.

However, I would talk to your company, find out where their office is, and how often you are rework be there. If the office is in Cork, then don’t move to Sligo (unless it is one annual meeting you attend) and if the office is in Dublin, don’t move to West Cork (again, while the distance in Ireland looks small, traffic is horrendous)

Good luck and welcome. In Mayo, Sligo and Galway and Donegal you will meet loads of people who have lived in the UK and still have family there - they will find something in common with you. My own mum spent her childhood in London and we went back every year. She had lots of English friends in our small West of Ireland town.

I wouldn't worry an anti-English sentiment. With all the emigration over & back to the UK, loads of Irish people have English accents. Actually northern accents would probably be preferable to a middle class southern accent! Where is your new office? That should help you make your decision on location.

I wouldn't go to Mayo, they're all about to go on a 12 month bender:)

@BornToBeWilde

I wouldn't go to Mayo, they're all about to go on a 12 month bender:)

Lol. Let's hope so. Westport is stunning but I would think property would be proicy around the immediate area.

@BornToBeWilde

I wouldn't go to Mayo, they're all about to go on a 12 month bender:)

We have 50 years to make up for :)

Also, yes, it can be a bit expensive around Westport, but compared to the UK, it's still bargainous!

Leitrim is lovely! Very friendly and old-fashioned in ways.

Here’s hoping 😂😂😂 and it’s 70 years 😱

Look into co Wexford too op.

@Annasgirl Time flies! :D Got everything crossed and the Guinness lorry booked :)

mind you it could be a 12 month wake as well

I'd look at co Wexford/Waterford/cork if I were you op. As others say will you need to be near ferryports/airports?

Where is the company based? It sounds like they would want you to go to the office from time to time if they want you to be in the country.

That may definitely impact where you live.

Tbh you're asking about an entire country! It's like me saying "where should I live in the UK" - you're going to get a hundred different answers and it's not going to really help.

I think northern accents will go in your favour. My english friend has experienced the odd stupid comment. Nothing that would make her want to move back, but yeh, every now and thing some idiot makes a comment. She is from Surrey.

I'm not finding any ''bargains'' on daft and I'm always looking!!

I suppose it depends what you're selling though.

Things to be aware of that are different from the uk (i used to live in the uk) no council tax but your rubbish and recycling is going to cost about 300 a year unless you live in an apartment where it's part of the maintenance.

Trip to the GP about 55e but if they refer you on to a hospital that's free, but prescriptions not free.
I have laya health ins for about 47 a month, just in case something bad happens to me which I never felt the need to do in the UK.

Ps, as you're English I'd live near the airport. Do you need a little bit of land around your house, or just a garden?

What's your budget?

Oh yeh, where's the company based?

The only warning I would give OP is that life is more expensive here (you will pay more income tax and pay for doctor's visits etc.)than the UK. Just to factor that in when you get a salary offer.
If you will have children, you will be expected to pay for school books. It could be a bit of a shock if you're used to these things being free in the UK.
Most companies do offer health insurance, but you will have to pay tax on that as well. Lots of lovely and varying ways the Irish government extorts their pound of flesh .

I'm Irish and lived in the UK for several years (am back home now for family reasons), but was surprised how cheap some things were over there comparatively. I do love it here though (despite it being a frustrating and ridiculous place at times).

If you're looking for rural and don't have to commute into Dublin, then the West is really beautiful as mentioned a few times. But if you're looking for rural-ish on the east coast, parts of Wicklow are lovely and it feels like rural country even though it is commuting distance to Dublin, Bray, Greystones. Plus you also have both the mountains and the sea pretty close by.

There's a guy on Youtube called Mossy Bottom (hopefully not his real name) who moved from Yorkshire I think, to buy very rurally in Sligo. He is restoring and old pre-famine cottage and growing his own food etc. He does talk about some of the differences he has experienced in a few different videos, so could be helpful in what to expect.