Relocate to Cork

Mello Yellow

Myself and Hubby (from east Meath) are thinking about uping sticks and moving to County cork. We currently both commute to Dublin city each day & have pretty good jobs (IT & Finance).

Are mains reasons for the move are:
- better general quality of life ( family down the line)
- shorter commute
- bigger house

We are looking at Mallow, Fermoy Youghal towns & surrounding for a max commute to cork city of 30 mins?

How realistic is it to get jobs in cork city for what we do? Any feedback on the above towns, is one much better than the other (no idea!). Is it a case of the grass is always greener ??

Any advice welcome, thanks.

bill_ashmount

Depends on what kind of IT jobs you are looking for. A lot of Cork people have had to go to Dublin after qualifying in IT, but saying that I've known a lot who have moved back recently after 6 or 7 years of trying. There just isn't the depth of jobs available in places like Cork, Limerick and Galway that there is in Dublin.

However on the plus side there are jobs out there. Companies like VMWare are still recruiting I believe.

Edit to say, the towns you mention might be a 30 minute commute to the city, but if you need to get to the opposite side of the city you will have to factor this in, could make any journey considerably longer.

RoundyMooney

If it were me, aside from the job front (which is of course paramount), I'd come down for a weekend and look around at a few places too.

If you're selling up there, you'll probably have equity, but how much is something you'll have to work out before you commit.

Certainly, from someone who's lived in both places (from Cork, and now back again), traffic is going to be much lighter, albeit still a factor depending on where you end up, and living costs are substantially cheaper too.

Cork has a lot to offer, many Dubs who have already made the move (or do so on weekends can testify to this.

Good Luck!

North&South

Hi, we too, are hoping to relocate to Cork - although we're coming from the UK!
We spent last week travelling from Dublin - Sligo - Galway - Cork for interviews (Hubby, not me!) and even in just a few days we realised that certain areas are a no-go depending on the time of day you have to travel & where to.
He applied for job at Carrigtohill, so we're looking at anything from Ballycotton to Macroom, Mallow & down to Kinsale! Big area!

I guess it'll be ok for him, because his proposed shift pattern is 7am to 3pm during the week, but our 24 yr old will probably end up working in Cork itself, so we're having to factor that in too!

Thank goodness for the internet - we'd be up the proverbial creek if we tried doing this 12 years ago!

Good luck for your move - hope it all goes well for you! Let us know where you're settling, you never know, we might be close neighbours!

Dudess

I'm a Corkie and I would say go for it - bias aside, it is a great place. Near the sea, countryside is always a short journey no matter how far into Cork city you are, lovely warm people, etc. One thing: in my opinion, a lot of the towns around County Cork are very gloomy, dreary places - Macroom, Mallow, Mitchelstown, Midleton (end of the 'M's ), Fermoy are dreadful.
North&South, Kinsale is a huge commute from Carrigtwohill. Closer areas would be Youghal and Cobh - much nicer than the above towns (to look at anyway - bit of scummy carry-on from younger crowds but that's the same as most small towns). Ballycotton is pretty but would be awfully dreary during the winter. Carrigtwohill itself - not too bad.
Now I know house prices are a pretty major consideration but I'll just throw in some other areas that are convenient to both Carrigtwohill and Cork city - Glounthaune and Glanmire. But probably a bit expensive. Blarney/Inniscarra (where I'm from) are really lovely. They're that bit further from Carrigtwohill but it's still a fairly manageable commute.
Have you looked at www.daft.ie for house prices?

RoundyMooney

Dudess wrote:

Closer areas would be Youghal and Cobh - much nicer than the above towns (to look at anyway - bit of scummy carry-on from younger crowds but that's the same as most small towns).

Cobh, yes. I've never seen so many tracksuits in one place.

Youghal is much quieter.

Aside from that, I would agree with the above to a degree. Midleton and to a lesser degree, Fermoy, have expanded greatly in recent years, and now offer much better facilities than they did before.

It all depends on what you want. Country living opens up a raft of possibilities, but you'll need wheels to take advantage of them (Saturday night taxis etc.).

If it's towns and facilities you want, long term, Blarney to Carrig is doable, when the North Ring is built, but until then, you'll have to suffer northside traffic, which to be fair, is nothing on the scale of say, Dublin.

The above, and Midleton/Carrig will have the advantage of proximity to Cork, but if that's not a factor, the likes of Youghal (which even at that is only half an hour from Patrick St.-off peak) becomes an excellent possibility in terms of value and facilities.

trotter_inc

Dudess wrote: »

One thing: in my opinion, a lot of the towns around County Cork are very gloomy, dreary places - Macroom, Mallow, Mitchelstown, Midleton (end of the 'M's ), Fermoy are dreadful.

I live in Macroom, mainly because the houses are cheaper than a lot of other areas and its close to my work in Ballincollig.

I know there are other much nicer towns around but Macroom has a couple of nice pubs where you get to meet some really nice locals.

There is extremely little crime (havent seen or heard of any so far), you dont get kids hanging around the street or outside your house.

We also just got a new Dunnes Stores which saves us having to go to Bishopstown to do our food shopping.

Its also quite close to Kerry, big plus for us as we like the outdoors.

That's just my opinion on Macroom and why I like it.

Tommy

Tonio

I moved from Meath to Cork in April. Having commuted to Dublin from Navan daily for 6 years I became sick of it - 1.5 hours each way. My 'commute' is now under 10 minutes. am living in Midleton - a lovely town. Both my wife and I work in finance/accounts and found jobs no problem. You wont regret it if you move.

Dudess

trotter_inc wrote: »

I live in Macroom, mainly because the houses are cheaper than a lot of other areas and its close to my work in Ballincollig.

I know there are other much nicer towns around but Macroom has a couple of nice pubs where you get to meet some really nice locals.

There is extremely little crime (havent seen or heard of any so far), you dont get kids hanging around the street or outside your house.

We also just got a new Dunnes Stores which saves us having to go to Bishopstown to do our food shopping.

Its also quite close to Kerry, big plus for us as we like the outdoors.

That's just my opinion on Macroom and why I like it.

Tommy

Yeah, true. I'm very familiar with Macroom. I think the town centre is a bit shabby but the outskirts are actually lovely.

Trojan911

trotter_inc wrote: »

I live in Macroom, mainly because the houses are cheaper than a lot of other areas and its close to my work in Ballincollig.

I know there are other much nicer towns around but Macroom has a couple of nice pubs where you get to meet some really nice locals.

There is extremely little crime (havent seen or heard of any so far), you dont get kids hanging around the street or outside your house.

We also just got a new Dunnes Stores which saves us having to go to Bishopstown to do our food shopping.

Its also quite close to Kerry, big plus for us as we like the outdoors.

Tommy

I second that. Also you are only a 35 minute drive from Clonakilty (voted recently top EU holiday destination). I grew up in Ballincollig & when I returned to Ireland I refused to moved there as I cannot stand the place or the surrounding areas. For a big town it has very little to offer in nightlife (pubs/clubs etc). A lot more serious crime there as well.

You can't go to wrong with a move to Macroom. You are only 35-40 mins drive from the city as well and it is still classed as the countryside. I, for one, would not describe Macroom as gloomy, dreary or shabby. Bustling, thriving & clean would be my opinion. There are also market days where you can get your fresh fruit 'n' veg, fish etc & I find the people extremely friendly.

TJ911...

trotter_inc

Dudess wrote: »

Yeah, true. I'm very familiar with Macroom. I think the town centre is a bit shabby but the outskirts are actually lovely.

Couldnt agree more, there are loads of shops that are really run down and left idle...

Dr. Nick

I moved form Meath to Cork and back again in the past 4 years. I would also recommend Macroom wholeheartedly.
(I think I lived close to trotter)