Moving to Cork from Germany

SommerMaedchen

Hello everyone,

I have accepted a job offer in Cork and will be making the move from Germany this summer. I've never been to Cork, so I would appreciate any helpful tips I can get. What would be the best neighborhood to move to (looking for a one or two bedroom apartment, ideally around 500-600 Euros a month)? I won't have a car, at least not in the beginning. I do enjoy cultural events, going out occasionally, so being close to those venues would be important to me.

What's one tip you would tell everyone to look out for? Maybe you have experience with a lousy landlord or recommend a place to buy groceries. Really anything is appreciated.

Thank you!!

Corholio

Hi. Congratulations on winning the move to Cork :P

From your interests I'd say living in College Road (Washington St. etc) would be a good fit. But really anywhere relatively close to the city would be a good fit. Blackpool and Douglas are also decently served by decent public transport if you find the city a bit too expensive, both only 10-15 min by bus.

The only tip I would say with accommodation is to know your rights with contracts, leases etc, it will be different from Germany. Lidl recently opened up in the city centre (Corrnmarket St.) so for cheapest they're decent. There's also Tesco quite near it, and then Dunnes on the Main St. (Patrick St.) and Supervalu in Merchants Quay Shopping Centre.

Another tip I'd give is make sure you travel around Cork and don't just stay in the vicinity of the City, lot of beautiful places in all directions of Cork. Im from East Cork, near the sea and there's a massive amount of scenic places out here, as an example.

Any questions, feel free to PM no bother.

Balmed Out

Where about is the new job, we would need to know if were going to be giving advice as to where you should live

kiwikid

Ok so relying on Irish transport is tricky. Check out the bus routes and location where you are working. While some routes look clear you could be spending a lot of time on the bus for a short distance. In the city I like the apartments along the quays but of you want quiet suburbs then Douglas, blackrock, bishopstown and Wilton are nice.your budget is pretty good too so it should be straightforward. Maybe book your week or two in a youth hostel or b&b and then see where everyone else is living . Good luck. If you need any help I live in cork and know a few German folks who could chat to you about it,

kaiphas

City centre would probably be ideal for you, BUT, depends on where your work place will be and your situation re family etc. if you are working in Ringaskiddy or Kinsale the city may not be the best location as the transport links are not that regular. Also will you be on your own or is their family, partner etc to consider also.

Short time leasing or house share (if on your own) would give you a chance to dip your toe in the water and see what suits you while giving you a base, rent.ie has details of short term leasing etc.

Let us know the location of your future employer so we can see what area makes most sense for you.

SommerMaedchen

Thank you for the quick replies everyone!!

Quick question on apartments: I've searched the different boards like rent.ie or daft.ie for example, but is more posted in the local paper? I will be coming to Cork two weeks before my jobs starts, in hope of finding a place to rent during that time. Is it easiest to make a list of potential places and then just schedule viewings the week I get there? I'll be moving with my partner.

Also, do you recommend a certain hostel to stay in while I don't have a place to live yet?

And the job will be with Apple, so located at Hollyhill.

Corholio

SommerMaedchen wrote: »

Thank you for the quick replies everyone!!

Quick question on apartments: I've searched the different boards like rent.ie or daft.ie for example, but is more posted in the local paper? I will be coming to Cork two weeks before my jobs starts, in hope of finding a place to rent during that time. Is it easiest to make a list of potential places and then just schedule viewings the week I get there? I'll be moving with my partner.

Also, do you recommend a certain hostel to stay in while I don't have a place to live yet?

And the job will be with Apple, so located at Hollyhill.

There are some posted in the paper, and definitely check them out when your here but those sites are still probably the best way to rent. Yes your definitely better making the list and scheduling, you'd be surprised at the interest in some places.

Bru Bar Hostel on McCurtain St. is a nice place, stayed there a few times when had friends from abroad over.

SommerMaedchen

Also, I do event photography as a passion of mine. Do you have recommendations for great live music venues? Interesting events, such as festivals, open mic nights, etc., to be aware of?

SommerMaedchen

And one more question: When looking at the monthly rent, are utilities usually included? If not how much should I be calculating for a two person household (water, electric, garbage)? And what about a decent Internet provider?

Thank you guys

pajor

SommerMaedchen wrote: »

And one more question: When looking at the monthly rent, are utilities usually included? If not how much should I be calculating for a two person household (water, electric, garbage)? And what about a decent Internet provider?

Thank you guys

Most apartments would be heated by gas. If there's a few apartments in a building, heating and hot water might be included in the rent.

Water charges are being introduced next year, so nothing for that yet.

I can't give a figure for bins, but usually landlord or letting agency will sort it out and you pay it.

UPC would be best for internet imo.

BryanF

Daft.ie & evening echo for accommodation. Always check the boards re landlords/ auctioneers. The bru hostel would be a goof first stop while house hunting or perhaps air-b&b. I'd recommend a bike and street map for the first few days as the best way to navigate/ learn the city. Good hunting and welcome to cork.

ABajaninCork

If you're working at Apple, then a city centre flat would be best for you. Very easy to get to Hollyhill via the 202 and it'll only be 15 minutes on the bus. As already mentioned, take time to explore County Cork too! Parnell Place bus station would be close by if you lived in the centre, and you can get buses to Galway, Limerick, Waterford and Dublin from there if you wanted to go further afield.

Plenty of decent shopping in Patrick St, and you've got Dunnes, Lidl and Tesco within walking distance as already stated.

I used to work at Apple, so feel free to PM me if you need help.

Good luck with the move! Welcome to Cork.

SpaceTime

SommerMaedchen wrote: »

And one more question: When looking at the monthly rent, are utilities usually included? If not how much should I be calculating for a two person household (water, electric, garbage)? And what about a decent Internet provider?

Thank you guys

Internet providers:

Cable: UPC (up to 200Mbit/s) (Same company as Kable BW in Germany)

www.upc.ie


Eircom (the Irish equivalent of Deutsche Telekom) rolled out Fibre to the Curb (FTTC) technology in basically all areas of Cork City in the last while. This provides up to 100Mbit/s, but it's using "VDSL2 & vectoring" over a copper phone line between your house and the local cabinet, so the speed varies depending on how far you are from the street cabinet. The speeds are typically pretty good though.

http://www.eircomwholesale.ie/Fibre_Rollout/

That service is available from a range of providers:

Eircom, Vodafone, Digiweb, Magnet, UTV Internet, Imagine and possibly a few others. (They all use their own backhaul and the eircom access network).

https://www.eircom.net/broadband/
http://www.vodafone.ie/home-phone-broadband/
http://www.magnet.ie/products/fatpipe-100/
http://www.digiweb.ie/home/broadband/fibre
http://utvconnect.com/ie/residential/broadband/fibre-optic-broadband/

(There are 15 of them apparently)

You can opt to take the services as 'naked broadband' without a phone service, with a regular phone service from the exchange or using VoIP built into the modem they provide.

In terms of mobile phone services:

You've quite a few options and some really decent rates for international calls from one or two of the smaller providers.

Main mobile companies: Vodafone, O2, Meteor and Three.
MVNOs: emobile, Tesco Mobile, LycaMobile, 48, BlueFace (major VoIP provider), UPC is also supposedly launching a mobile service sometime in the next few months.

Worth shopping around anyway!

kaiphas

You get get an informal ideas of what is going on from http://www.peoplesrepublicofcork.com and a more serious view from http://www.irishexaminer.com

On your first weekend take a tour of the city http://www.corkcitytour.com it's about 15 euro and you will get a flavour for the history and the areas around the city. It is a standard hop on hop off coach trip but will give you an idea about where you might want to see in more detail on subsequent weeks.

As per the other posters, don't miss the opportunity to explore the county outside of the city. East Cork beaches and scenery rock . Don't miss the opportunity to do the Ballycotton cliff walk http://www.ballycotton.com/leisure_walking.htm a beautiful way to spend a few hours and an area that will offer you some great opportunity for photos etc.

Welcome to Ireland and enjoy the craic.

SpaceTime

Electricity and Gas:

You've a choice of:

Electric Ireland
Energia
Bord Gais Energy
SSE Airtricity

and for gas only:
FloGas is an extra option.

In most apartments your garbage's probably included in your service charges.
However, outside of an apartment complex (the vast majority of accommodation in Ireland is houses), garbage collection is done commercially, so you need to pick a provider.

In Cork: Greenstar, Country Clean and Weiser seem to be the main ones.

www.greenstar.ie
www.countryclean.ie
www.wiserbins.ie

You'll get a general waste, recycling, glass and increasingly a compostable food waste collection.
There are various different plans available depending on what you want to do.

Water charges are being introduced from this year, so check out www.water.ie

Public transport in Cork's all bus-based and is more like North American levels of frequency than European. It's a very car-dependent city.

You can get public transport passes "Leap Card" from www.leapcard.ie

Basically, the city and suburbs are now in two zones "Red Zone" and "Green Zone".
http://www.transportforireland.ie/minister-kelly-launches-leap-card-cork-fares-16-cheaper/

Property Tax:

This is payable by the landlord, not the tenant so don't worry about it, it's basically included in your rent.

The landlord is however required by law to register the tenancy with the Private Rental Tenancies Board ( www.prtb.ie ) so, ensure that this has been done as it protects your rights in a fairly serious way.


...

Banking:

The big pain in the rear in Ireland (and also the UK) is usually opening a bank account.

We don't have any official form of ID in either country or proof of address. So, you'll need to bring your passport and a copy of your lease and a utility bill (if possible) in your name to the bank along with your passport and any other ID you have.

If you have any problems, I would suggest that you get Apple's HR department to help they might have some ability to liaise with whatever bank they use.


....

PPS (PPSN) "Personal Public Service Number"

You will absolutely need a PPS Number (PPSN). They're used for accessing public services and for processing tax.

See : https://www.welfare.ie/en/Pages/Personal-Public-Service-Number-How-to-Apply.aspx for more details.

It's a relatively straight forward process compared to many countries, but it's worth getting it processed as quickly as possible so that your tax affairs are in order and you don't get charged "emergency tax".

If you're an employee in Ireland, your tax is collected by your employer and passed to Revenue (the tax office). If you have no tax credits allocated, you'll be charged "Emergency Tax" which is the maximum rate and the refunded at the end of the tax year.

To avoid this, make sure you've everything setup a.s.a.p.

Generally, your HR department will organise all this quite quickly. It's not a particularly bureaucratic system.

SommerMaedchen

Wow, thank you everyone for the amount of replies. I truly appreciate it.

I'm very much a planner, so I wish I could already have everything in place. I will be flying over in June, so little less than two months left.

SpaceTime, thank you for all of the links. I'm already prepping a checklist of things I need to do when I first get there. I would've never, for example, thought about checking with the landlord if my tenancy is registered with the PRTB.

kaiphas wrote: »

On your first weekend take a tour of the city

Great idea with the city tour! Will probably do that the day we get there.

SpaceTime

Also one thing I'd say is that I know quite a few people who moved here and stayed entirely in the city centre.

Ireland doesn't really work like many continental European countries. Our settlement paterns lead to really spread out populations rather than dense cities.

A lot of Cork City's population is in leafy low density suburbs and satellite communities. around it.

Also there are absolutely amazing towns in County Cork within 30 min from the city.

So if you're here, definitely explore West Cork and the county in general.
It's one of the most spectacular regions in Europe but, you can get a very narrow view of it just sitting in Cork City Centre.

Maybe hire a car now and then and join some of the Meetups and walking/hiking etc clubs.

Cork's also very foodie, but again that's not always in the city centre,although it does have a lot of really interesting cafés, restaurants she a huge indooor food market.

A night out in Kinsale or Clonakilty etc is very worthwhile!

Milly33

Congrats on the job hope it goes rocking for you.. One with the rental places just stay away from Choices and you should be ok. Bunch of tools they be.. Places that have a good bus service well on the south side anywho sorry don't know much of the north side which I will say there are some nice spots.. But Ballintemple, Mahon, Douglas all have a fairly good bus service into town.. If you are coming before the marquee starts off tis a great venue to see gigs.. Price have gone up with rental though so it might take a while finding the right spot.. You should get onto the other chap on boards his looking for a team up might suit you

Manach

Guten Abend. Also that the Cork colours are red and white and you will need to understand the intricacies of the games of hurling and gaelic football within the first six months

FrStone

SommerMaedchen wrote: »

What would be the best neighborhood to move to (looking for a one or two bedroom apartment, ideally around 500-600 Euros a month)? I won't have a car, at least not in the beginning. I do enjoy cultural events, going out occasionally, so being close to those venues would be important to me.

My only concern for you is that it would be difficult to find an apartment for €500 to €600 per month.

When looking at houses/flats in the city and suburbs a 2 bed roomed place is about a minimum of €800. Whereas there is alot better value to be had in renting a 3 or 4 bed room house as the price doesn't increase significantly. So just be aware that you may end up paying more for accommodation than you have budgeted.

Also if you live in the city center you will get along fine without a car, but once you are settled with awhile I would advise buying one, if you want to go and see Ireland it is so much easier with a car.

Also you said you are working for Apple. 99% of the time the bus service is ok, but just be aware that on days like Halloween or bonfire night the bus will not run up to Apple for the safety of the bus and bus driver. Most people in Apple are generally aware of this but there are always a few who get caught out on the day and it can be difficult to get a taxi to come up on days the bus service decides not to run.

deRanged

you might like to join Cork German Stammtisch. It's a german speaking meetup group - meets every two weeks in a pub in town for a chat.

There's also "Germans in Cork, Ireland". I don't know much about that group.

Faith

FrStone wrote: »

My only concern for you is that it would be difficult to find an apartment for €500 to €600 per month.

When looking at houses/flats in the city and suburbs a 2 bed roomed place is about a minimum of €800. Whereas there is alot better value to be had in renting a 3 or 4 bed room house as the price doesn't increase significantly. So just be aware that you may end up paying more for accommodation than you have budgeted.

This, absolutely. We're paying over €800 for a 2 bedroom house on the outskirts of the city, and everywhere we looked at was on average €750 for a 2-bed and about €700 for a 1-bed.

SpaceTime

Yeah I'd agree, your budget is probably a bit low. The only thing I would say is that you won't have property tax or community charges. However, you will pay for refuse service (garbage) and water (from later this year).

So, compared to Germany you're possibly paying slightly less in terms of direct charges on the house or apartment.

Also bear in mind that Ireland is very house-orientated. We have the smallest % of apartment dwellers in the EU.

This means that often you'll get better value in suburban housing than city centre apartments as supply is higher.

It's worth considering both options.

One other thing to bear in mind is energy efficiency.

Irish & British weather is very mild compared to central Europe. However, it's not warm. A lot of older Irish and British houses have very, very minimal insulation.
That can put your heating costs way, way up in winter.

The other thing to watch out for is electric storage heating. It was popular amongst apartment developers in the 80s and 90s as it was cheap to fit. However, its very inflexible and expensive to run.

Gas fired central heating using radiators tends to be the norm and usually the most cost-effective solution.

Some suburban homes may also use oil-fired systems which are also generally pretty good.

Communal and district heating is extremely rare here, even apartments will have individual heating systems.

Personally, I would try to get something reasonably modern or recently refurbished as you'll quite likely save a lot in terms of energy bills.

SommerMaedchen

Milly33 wrote: »

You should get onto the other chap on boards his looking for a team up might suit you

Thanks for the heads up, will see what exactly he is looking for. Wouldn't mind to do a house share with someone. Lived with housemates before and never really had an issue sharing space as long as people are clean and respectful.

FrStone wrote: »

My only concern for you is that it would be difficult to find an apartment for €500 to €600 per month.

When looking at houses/flats in the city and suburbs a 2 bed roomed place is about a minimum of €800. Whereas there is alot better value to be had in renting a 3 or 4 bed room house as the price doesn't increase significantly. So just be aware that you may end up paying more for accommodation than you have budgeted.

Faith wrote: »

This, absolutely. We're paying over €800 for a 2 bedroom house on the outskirts of the city, and everywhere we looked at was on average €750 for a 2-bed and about €700 for a 1-bed.

That's good to know. Perhaps I will find someone to house share. My trouble with that is that most people looking are not open to house sharing with a couple. Is this common? Would it be easier renting a house and then finding the additional tenant?

FrStone wrote: »

Also you said you are working for Apple. 99% of the time the bus service is ok, but just be aware that on days like Halloween or bonfire night the bus will not run up to Apple for the safety of the bus and bus driver. Most people in Apple are generally aware of this but there are always a few who get caught out on the day and it can be difficult to get a taxi to come up on days the bus service decides not to run.

The bonfire night? Never heard of that before... it gets dangerous for the bus to run?

deRanged wrote: »

you might like to join Cork German Stammtisch. It's a german speaking meetup group - meets every two weeks in a pub in town for a chat.

There's also "Germans in Cork, Ireland". I don't know much about that group.

Nice, I'm all about meeting new people. Doesn't really have to be just Germans though. I'm definitely planning to get involved with the community.

SpaceTime wrote: »

This means that often you'll get better value in suburban housing than city centre apartments as supply is higher.

It's worth considering both options.

I was trying to find a map of the bus that will run up to Hollyhill, so that I could find a place to live close by. I found this buseireann.ie/pdf/1387201940-202.pdf (it wouldn't let me post it as a link), but perhaps there's a map version as well?

And we don't really have to be right in the city centre. I just want to be close enough to enjoy events and live music. I'm not picky on size, the place doesn't need to be large.

SpaceTime

Apple's campus is actually located in an area of the city that I would describe as fairly rough. It's not dangerous and it has lovely views of the city, but it wouldn't be my first choice of places to rent.

If you want to be close to the campus, consider somewhere like Sunday's Well on the Northern side of the City Center. It's basically looking out over the University Campus and has some stunning views.

The city centre itself is very compact and really anything in that area is within a short walk to a bus that will take you to work.

There are a lot of nice small houses and apartments immediately south of the river too in areas like Blackrock (SE of the City Centre), Ballintemple etc.

The one thing I'd find about the city centre (having lived in an apartment there before) is that at the lower end of the market (I mean <€1100) you'll find that you'll be encountering a lot of student neighbours who can be a *BIT* noisy.

So, if you're more interested in a pleasant, quiet and enjoyable lifestyle maybe avoid some of the more studenty complexes and look for something slightly outside the city centre itself.

Bear in mind, Cork's very compact and the city centre and immediate surrounds are all within a 15 min walk of each other.

Also remember that Cork's predominantly a 18th Century and Victorian (19th century) city in terms of its architecture so a lot of its gems are quite hidden compared to some cities and towns. There are some really fantastic quirky older suburbs like Blackrock and Montenotte that are not immediately obvious unless you spend a bit of time exploring.

Living in / close to the city centre in a nice spot is really very pleasant. It has excellent shopping, great food markets and loads of quirky bars and restaurants and it's very vibrant for a city its size.

Personally, I'd go for something on the edge of the city centre area / older inner suburbs rather than the city centre itself (unless you're going to go for quite an expensive complex).

If you're in Cork City you may as well have access to all the quirky and interesting aspects of the city centre while you're here, but you may not necessarily want to be living cheek-by-jowl with extremely noisy students either. So, I'd say find somewhere that balances the two.

celica00

SommerMaedchen wrote: »

Also, I do event photography as a passion of mine. Do you have recommendations for great live music venues? Interesting events, such as festivals, open mic nights, etc., to be aware of?

yeah there is plenty of stuff going on, for example in Cyprus Avenue (above old oak)

Rhys Essien

Guten Tag

I just saw a nice apartment in the Sundays Well area.Nice area and nice view and close to Apple.Make an offer of €600.

See here

http://www.daft.ie/lettings/15-sundays-well-road-cork-sundays-well-cork/1437148/

evilivor

Might be handy to know that using the Cycle to Work scheme, your employer can help you obtain a brand new bicycle and safety equipment worth up to 1,000 euro. You can use a salary sacrifice arrangement to pay for the bike monthly and that means you can save up to 52% of the retail price of a bike and equipment - so you get a lot of bang for your buck.

Cork, despite objections, is very slowly being dragged into the the 21st century regarding a cycling infrastructure - the area around Apple is quite well served in terms of cycle lanes etc though it is a pretty tough hilly spin up there for a lot of the journey (it's lovely coming down).

There is a short-term car rental/sharing company with a number of locations in the city (they also have small vans) http://www.gocar.ie/ - handy when you ae getting settled in.

ABajaninCork

Yes, Apple definitely operate that scheme. It would be well worth looking into.

SommerMaedchen

Will keep all that advice in mind. You guys have been a great help. Can't say thank you enough!! I'm excited to explore Cork, a new adventure awaits.

I will post again when it gets a bit closer and I have a selection of possible places to live.

Herb Powell

Wilkommen, und viel Spass in Cork!

Vor allem ist es kack teuer, aber naja, es ist schoen. Viel Erfolg!