Relocating to the Motherland!

[Areyouseriousrightnow]

We’re a London based family, both me and my DH with Irish parents, but both lived our entire lives in England. We decide to make some changes following ‘all this’, and one of them is to relocate, but not decided where. I’d like to move to Dublin, where my family is from and where I spent summer/Christmas growing up. I’m sick of Brexit, Austerity, Tory Bolux, I love Dublin, lots of reasons why I think it’s where I’d prefer to bring my children up.
DH not convinced, sees it as a huge upheaval (we have 3 DC). I want to be realistic with myself about the challenges. We’d have to sell up and buy over there, and am aware the property market is utterly nuts in Dublin, but I probably underestimating how nuts. I’m not sure what the job situation is like or the economy at the moment? (I really need to do more homework.
What advice would you give me?

Well property prices in Dublin are ridiculous, but if you live in London you'll be used to that! I know a few families who have relocated in the last few years and they feel their quality of life is better here.

I suppose a first step would be to research the job market and see how much you'd be likely to earn here and whether that would buy you a house in the area you'd want to live in. Maybe you could rent out your house in London rather than sell, then you'd have the option to go back if you decide Ireland is not for you after all.

The job market seems pretty buoyant to me, for professionals at least, especially IT and related. Dh has just switched jobs and there was a lot of choice, constant calls from recruiters.

The ages of your dc would have an impact too, I'd move before secondary, it's much more of an upheaval then. A lot of people find the education system more relaxed here, that can be hard for parents to adjust to if you're used to a ' pressure cooker' school environment. I've noticed that with a few friends who have been primed for 11plus style tutoring and get a bit of a shock with the lack of pressure.

What areas are you familiar with/would you like to live in? If you can work remotely that will give you a lot more options. Could you stay in your current job and work remotely?

Lots of people seem to be leaving Dublin for the country as they are WFH. I read this week the rents are actually dropping in Dublin and rising in rural areas. That could work in your favour if you want to rent in Dublin for a year to try it out.

Great advice thank you so much.
That’s reassuring about the job market, my husband works in IT, although what he does is quite niche so not sure how transferable it is, I’m think maybe he needs to speak to a recruiter?
My eldest is two years from secondary, am I right in thinking kids are a year older starting secondary school over there? I’ve heard good things about the Irish education system, looking (far) ahead would be gold to know that if it s what the children decided, they won’t be saddled with huge debt in order to go to university.
I know places like Rathmines, Terenure, we have a pretty long list of places we like, I’d love something like Howth to be near the coast to be honest! I can’t work remotely as I’m a HCP, my husband has been WFH since last March although they won’t let him continue to do so if he moves to another country..
interesting about the nice out to the country- we had a little look out of interest snd we’re astonished what you can get for your money!!!

Make sure you check about the DCs having to learn Irish. IIRC if they move here before 11 they don't get an exemption (this may have changed though) but it's worth checking.

I think Dublin is a great place to live. Near the countryside and the sea but also a proper capital city with lots of culture and things going on (at least in non Covid times).
I live in London but grew up in Dublin and still have a house there I go back to in the holidays.
People I know who’ve moved back from London can sometimes find it quite claustrophobic- it is quite a small city and if you work or are involved in a niche area you will quickly get to know everyone else in that area. It can sometimes feel a bit suffocating if you’re used to the bigger pond that is the UK. Also you get used to London where literally everything is readily available from obscure hobbies to specialists in just about everything especially any form of healthcare (healthcare system in Ireland definitely not as extensive as in the UK though GP services are often better as you have to pay to see one)

But overall people find the pace of life a bit slower, the education system less pressured and although housing costs are high you will still get a lot more for your money than London.
I would say the job situation and security is key. There are obviously less opportunities in a smaller city so if you lose your job it can be harder to find something else similar. But with the change to more working from home etc I would say things are pretty positive in the jobs market in Ireland generally especially in IT based areas
Also if you want to be in Dublin itself think about whether you want to be near the Dart/Lukas lines as Dublin bus services are nothing like as frequent as London buses!

One other thing to think about if you haven’t already is schools. There are lots of fee paying schools in Dublin - they are much cheaper than in the UK (as the Government subsidies them). They aren’t necessarily better than the non fee-paying ones but most have better sports facilities etc. And there isn’t the anyway near the same angst about private v state schools as there is in the UK.
So do look at them too if you can afford them

What’s your house budget? Presumably moving from London you will get better value in Dublin even though house prices are crazy. Check out myhome.ie.

@RuggerHug

Make sure you check about the DCs having to learn Irish. IIRC if they move here before 11 they don't get an exemption (this may have changed though) but it's worth checking.

Learning Irish ahhhh. I remember this crossed my mind briefly when we were first considering this option and then I must’ve quickly blocked it. This would be v difficult. Do people get a tutor or something if they need to pick it up quickly? @IrishGirl2020 really helpful thankyou. Hearing generally positive things about job market from you all so far which is reassuring. Great point about Dart/Lukas. And schools. @Anoisagusaris up to €1m euro at an absolute push, but happier around €900k (or less haha). Thanks all, hugely appreciating the advice.

Sorry predictive text error - should read Dart/Luas
As a teenager in Dublin we lived on the Dart line and it was key for me getting around - to school, into town to hang out with mates etc.

Re the Irish, if your kids are young they’ll pick it up easily but obviously if a bit older they might need a bit more help. I’m sure the school would advise you - definitely look into it but it’s unlikely to be a major problem. I think the worst case scenario would just be that, yes they would have to pass the exam, but maybe they wouldn’t sit the paper at a higher level and maybe wouldn’t use it towards points for university.

If you are intending to work as a HCP it'd be worth checking if you can automatically do so. I have heard of people having difficulties when moving back.

There are a few other things to consider, you will need health insurance and the general cost of living is very high.

Most schools are Catholic and it can be hard to get into non religious ones so that's definitely something to consider

@IrishGirl2020

Sorry predictive text error - should read Dart/Luas As a teenager in Dublin we lived on the Dart line and it was key for me getting around - to school, into town to hang out with mates etc.

Re the Irish, if your kids are young they’ll pick it up easily but obviously if a bit older they might need a bit more help. I’m sure the school would advise you - definitely look into it but it’s unlikely to be a major problem. I think the worst case scenario would just be that, yes they would have to pass the exam, but maybe they wouldn’t sit the paper at a higher level and maybe wouldn’t use it towards points for university.

Haha I couldn’t remember the name of the tramline so I just went with it!!! Thanks, all good to know. @rhnireland ok thanks will definitely check that out on eligibility to work. We are Catholic so hopefully that’s ok on the school front, but yes good point on health insurance and cost of living, this is definitely a concern.

Would you be open to moving to Northern Ireland? Wages aren't quite as high but it has a cheaper cost of living than most of the south.

@Cybercubed

Would you be open to moving to Northern Ireland? Wages aren't quite as high but it has a cheaper cost of living than most of the south.

I have never been to Northern Ireland, so it instinctively feels like it would be too big a jump, A big selling point of Dublin is that we’ve been many times as a family, it’s where my family are from, and it’s sort of familiar to me having done the summer/Xmas thing there until adulthood, so it’s not such an unknown.

Reading with interest as I’d move back in a shot.

Our governments are essentially Tory. Just not wedded to Thatcherism. The health system is not fully comprehensive either. We were in shock at the prices the first year or so. But you stop thinking about it. Now I'm more shocked at the tiny pension my sis has to live on in the UK. Living here is way different to being on hols. There is a tendency to get frustrated with some aspects and find fault.But give it a lash. Go néirí libh

Before Covid I split my time between London and Dublin, but have spent all of lock down in Dublin.

Teh Irish talk a lot about the insanity of the property market here, but it pales into insignificance against London prices. The biggest issue is that prices often go for significantly over the asking price and the stock is extremely limited.

Thanks these are all very useful insights. A lot to think about but nothing that has put me off! Although property market is giving me a bit of a fright. I don’t think you typically see properties going for significantly over asking price in London (in my experience) so that sounds pretty hardcore to me. I’ve also been told you’ll be expected to be chain free, if you’re in a chain it’s unlikely your offer would be accepted, is that true?

Re property prices going for over, it’s been like that since I bought me first place here 5 years ago, so perhaps not reflective of a panicked market in the way that it might be in U.K.

I don’t know about the chain. It’s true that at the top end of the market many are cash buyers or have already sold property overseas (U.K./ US) and if you’re in a bedding war with someone in that position it’s tough.

We got our house because they liked the idea of the house going to a family or not being split up for rental market.

Just don’t expect it to be culturally like London, or indeed England in general. I know you’ve been often on holidays, but living here would be very different. I’m Irish and lived mostly in London and the Midlands for over 20 years before moving back with a child, and several English friends have moved here over the past few years post-Brexit and struggled, despite having spent a fair amount of time in Ireland.

Info about exemption from Irish (point 4)

www.education.ie/en/Parents/Information/Irish-Exemption/FAQs.html

Something to be mindful of (and touched on by poster before me) but it can be hard to jump in and feel settled straight away as an English born person living here albeit with Irish parents. There’s a weird dual identity thing where you’re seen as Irish in London (parents, Catholic school, Irish dancing etc) but seen as English over here despite having very similar formative experiences. Some people get very distressed by Irish people not seeing them as ‘Irish’ in the same way as people born here. Just something got be aware of in advance. Best of luck

Thanks @CliffsofMohair that’s very helpful!

Good point. My husband experienced this in a little shop we visited on a trip to see his family in Co. Clare.. he was a bit upset that the American who came in shortly after us, was welcomed in as Irish (with v remote ancestry) , while he, with Irish parents who brought him up embracing his heritage, was very much seen as English.
He asked me if that was how everyone saw him over there.. I wasn’t sure how to respond!

@Areyouseriousrightnow

Thanks *@CliffsofMohair* that’s very helpful!

Good point. My husband experienced this in a little shop we visited on a trip to see his family in Co. Clare.. he was a bit upset that the American who came in shortly after us, was welcomed in as Irish (with v remote ancestry) , while he, with Irish parents who brought him up embracing his heritage, was very much seen as English.
He asked me if that was how everyone saw him over there.. I wasn’t sure how to respond!

Well, yes, it will be, unless he specifically tells people his parents are from Clare, or you’re planning to settle among the cousins — or until people actually get to know him, rather than serving him in a shop. Did he tell the shop person his link to the place? I find the main difference with Irish-Americans is that they’re far more likely to bob up in shops and say ‘My great-granny was from Belturbet!’

I don’t actually think that there’s any particularly different approach to Irish-Americans. When I had a university job that involved dealing with visiting students, every year I would get upset Americans of Irish descent who couldn’t grasp that Irish students didn’t see them as Irish, because that’s how they identified.

@Brimorion yeh he did tell them , he hadn’t been to Clare before (it’s me who has spent the school holidays in Ireland) so he was telling everybody who’d listen 🙄😆
But yes, interesting, a question of how people see themselves and how others see them- something we’d need to live with rather than something we can do anything about!

I am not sure what sort of HCP you are, but you will likely need to get your professional registration validated by the relevant body here, and that could take some time. If you are planning on working for the HSE, you need to start looking into that ASAP. It took the best part of 18 months to get my Midwifery registration and secure a temporary contract in the hospital that I wanted to work at. The HSE is wildly dysfunctional.

i grew up in Mayo but left straight after my Leaving and have moved back 3 years ago - mid forties, primary school aged children. There has been a huge cultural shift post Celtic Tiger, and it is shifting again, post Covid. It is quietly polarised - can feel very eco conscious, lots of compassion and cultural sensitivity alongside some barely concealed racism and a strong belief in free market capitalism.

@MaudebeGonne that’s fascinating thank you.