Moving to Ireland

[SapphireStrange]

My DP and I are currently in London but looking at moving to the ROI – in part, I'll be honest, with Brexit in mind; we want to keep our rights as EU citizens.

We would want to live in a city or vibrant town, ideally by the sea, and are thinking of maybe Cork, Galway City, Castletownbere, Tralee...

Does anyone live in any of these places or similar, vibrant cities or towns? Are they nice to live in? We both like nice places to hang out and have good coffee and food; art galleries and interesting art/cultural things going on.

Would we be OK on an income of about 45K? We'd either sell our place in London (probably for about £600k) or rent it out (probably for about £2000 a month). We both work for ourselves at home/flexibly and anticipate much of our work continuing to come from London.

[Chavelita]

It would be expensive, and the Irish Times is talking about house prices indicating a 'Phoenix economy'...

Kinsale is pretty, foodie, yachty, in nice countryside, close to Cork to the point where it's increasingly a commuter town, but rather touristy, if that bothers you.

[Rareshopkins]

If you are going to need high speed broadband then definitely do your research. It's pretty shocking in some areas. Are you sure your income stream will be in place after Brexit?

I would not move to Cork, lived there for a time and visit often. I would choose Galway any day over it. Probably offending people now but I found Cork quite insular, very hard to break into .

[Pigwitch]

Where have you visited in Ireland OP? You really need to visit and spend some time wherever you intend to move before going.
I lived in County Galway for 4 years and while it's a beautiful place I was glad to move back to the UK. Don't underestimate the completely different culture there. As a British couple living in Ireland expect to face some prejudice at some point.
And don't ever get ill - its expensive.

[Chavelita]

Yes, west Cork (in which I wouldn't include Kinsale, though I think it markets itself as the gateway to west Cork these days) has had lots of resident foreigners for decades now. It's full of English potters or Germans making organic cheese and artists from all over. In fact, that to me is one of the big differences with the bit of rural England I currently live in, which is foreigner-free apart from me and my family.

[neady]

OP I live in Dublin but I'm from Kerry. Dublin would be far too expensive to live on 45k. I live in North Dublin on the DART line & rent is astronomical - €1800 pm for a terraced bog standard 3 bed. Upside would be jobs are more plentiful. Kerry is really gorgeous, it's a fabulous place to raise kids. Rents are ok but on the way up - about €700 pm for a 3 bed. It is cheaper to live there but the wages reflect that. If you have any questions please ask!

[SapphireStrange]

Neither of us have been to Ireland but I would visit, obviously, before committing to moving!

I only need broadband for email etc; I don't work online as such.

Income streams –well, everything is up in the air around Brexit, isn't it, but I can't see any specific reason why either of our industries would vanish during/after it.

My wage estimate might be pessimistic; it depends really on what DP would do for work. One of his areas doesn't pay much and, combined with mine, gives us the 45k figure; but if he went back to work in his old industry he'd earn much more.

Chavelita, the idea of somewhere with a mixed population is very appealing; that's what I'd miss most about London.

[junebirthdaygirl]

You should look at Kilkenny..It has everything you want except the sea.

[MaudGonneMad]

You want to get Irish citizenship but neither you nor your DH have ever even visited?

[mustiwearabra]

Hopefully I can help, lived in Ireland for 5 years and husband is Irish. We've lived in London for 5 years now and won't ever move back which may tell you something. Of course, you might love it. Here are some of my thoughts on Ireland which might help you :)

• 90% of the people are absolutely lovely and will go out their way to help a perfect stranger so if your car ever breaks down or your heating dies, you're sorted! Someone always knows someone and people are just genuinely willing to help. It's an old fashioned way of thinking and it's lovely.
  
• The other 10% can often be found in the smaller towns where you really can be looked at like an alien if you dare to grace the door of a local pub. They'll let you drink sure, but you'll be glared at.
  
• I know you say that the bulk of your work will come from London but depending on what industry you work in, you might miss being "around" it if that makes sense and having easy access to courses, networking events, meeting contacts etc (I have no idea what you do so obviously that might not apply)
  
• Living costs can be very high over there especially for food and fuel. It's the norm to have a house with oil heating (very bloody pricey) or storage heating and an open fire. Obviously there are plenty of places with gas central heating but just to make you aware, the other options are very much the norm. Food is definitely more expensive but I will say that meat wise, local butchers always do fabulous deals and they'll always have a good natter with you.
  
• You'll be paying for your medical fees. A visit to the GP costs around 50 Euros a pop and they have a cap on prescription fees so if you need a tonne of meds, they cut it off at something like 120 Euros so you'll never pay more than that. Obviously that still potentially leaves you paying a lot. A visit to A&E will set you back 100 Euros without any treatment, that's just the basic fee. What I will say though is that it's much easier to have a GP visit you in your home which I always found to be a great help.
  
• You really need to think about what you love about London and whether you could deal with permanently being away from all of that. It's a wonderful, charming place for a holiday but living there long term can be very different for some people.
  
  Hope some of that helps.

[SapphireStrange]

june, I looked at Kilkenny and it sounds great, but my logic goes, if I have to give up the things I love in London, I need something to make up for them, and for me I think it would be a beautiful landscape and sea.

musti, that's really helpful; thank you.
This: The other 10% can often be found in the smaller towns where you really can be looked at like an alien if you dare to grace the door of a local pub made me think of An American Werewolf in London .

No, my work is pretty solitary and I don't need to go on courses or anything and wouldn't miss being 'around' it. Good thought though.

As I said to june, yes I adore London but I also adore the sea and the countryside. I guess I need to decide whether the gain of one would make up for the loss of the other…

[mustiwearabra]

Our motto for everything is, "Be grand sure," haha so go with whatever you think will make you happy and best of luck :)

[FacelikeaBagofHammers]

Think about hiring a car and doing some traveling first? There are some spectacularly gorgeous parts of Ireland but also very remote too. I love Dublin but the rental prices are insane!

I think I'd choose Cork over Galway, the scenery is stunning and the locals are great.

[Shutupanddance1]

Think you should probably visit Ireland quite a few times before you decide you want to move, especially in rural Ireland.
The whole citizen thing makes me a little

[mathanxiety]

Not sure you should discount the south east - counties Carlow, Wexford, Kilkenny, Wicklow - all are nice to live in.

Maybe a small town like Carlow, Ferns, New Ross, Enniscorthy, Wexford Town, Gorey, Wicklow Town or Arklow would suit? Bunclody is small but nice too.

I wouldn't touch Cork with a bargepole (pockets of deprivation), and Galway rentals are shit thanks to the thousands of students. Plus it rains and rains and rains and rains in the west.

I would do a lot of hands on research before making up my mind if I were you. You would have to be certain of your income for starters. Can you do a realistic business projection? Can you qualify for citizenship? Then trawl the net to see what you can find on discussion boards, etc. Look at the fact that Ireland has a different health system. What will you lose by way of pension rights if you emigrate? Familiarise yourselves with the general lie of the land - look at maps and get used to travelling distances. Then, above all, go to Ireland and spend time there. Talk with people and see how you feel you are coming across.

You are not necessarily going to be the outsiders - I had a very English uncle, former Army medic, who moved to Ireland well into middle age and was immediately welcome in his local, found a source for poitin, made friends much to his delight, and found himself very much at home.

Would you do as well in the Netherlands?

[Nellyphants]

A genuine question, why do you want to put down roots in a country you've never been in?

[Embolio]

Do not underestimate how much it rains! (Am English and live in Northern Ireland with Irish husband & kids). You really really need to visit - not just Dublin- before thinking any more about it. The republic is VERY expensive in terms of cost of living- no nhs, you pay for all the kids school books etc. It's also culturally more different than you'd expect.

Having said that, I've lived here 10 years and i can't see us ever moving back to England. My husband and kids have Irish citizenship and I'll be applying for mine when I get round to it (and save up the required yoyo's - it costs over a grand).

I've also never had any disparaging comments about being English, it's a friendly place by and large. It can be insular and hard to break into friendship groups (a LOT of people seem to have had the same friends since childhood), but if you put the time and effort in (as with anything) it's grand.

[Embolio]

You could try posting on craicnet topic if you want to find more Irish mumsnetters?

[user1493022461]

My DP and I are currently in London but looking at moving to the ROI – in part, I'll be honest, with Brexit in mind; we want to keep our rights as EU citizens

How did you imagine you could do that simply by moving to Ireland?

[mathanxiety]

They intend to apply for Irish citizenship, User.

[user1493022461]

But do they have any concept of how one does that, is my point?

[CreamCheez]

Moving from London to Ireland, city or rural, would be a huge culture shock. I say that as an Irish person who lived in London & moved home, to a city. But if you lived in the Scottish countryside, fair enough...
Not having been to Ireland or having Irish relatives though, you'll find that Irish folk are totally different to English. Like, the French are a different breed. We might speak the same language, but...
Again, I say that as person who lived in the UK & got on great with my English colleagues & friends. There is just a massive cultural difference that you should consider.

[SapphireStrange]

Thanks for all the further ideas.

As for the sceptical comments and faces about putting down roots/citizenship, well, I did say that these were not plans but possibles. I'm just exploring ideas.

[mathanxiety]

www.citizensinformation.ie/en/moving_country/irish_citizenship/becoming_an_irish_citizen_through_naturalisation.html

Hoops to jump through.

It boils down to verifiable residence, self supporting and documentation thereof, of good character, bona fide future residence in Ireland expected, plus ability to cough up 950Euro per application.

The five years of meeting all the conditions will be expensive as you will need private health insurance, unless you will be able to nip back to the UK for healthcare, assuming the NHS isn't sold to the highest bidder a week after the General Election.

[mathanxiety]

Wrt paying for school books - this is quite often a one off investment because the books are good for the entire Junior Cycle or Leaving Cert cycle. Plus, there is a thriving market in used books - the syllabus doesn't change a whole lot.