Thinking of moving to Athy/Kildare/Portlaoise

_Kaiser_

Hey all,

So I'm currently working and living in South Dublin the last few years and have gotten a pretty good deal in terms of rent for that period. But with rental prices spiralling out of control in Dublin, and the landlord asking for a significant readjustment to take this into account I'm considering my options.

I can afford the increase and if it were just me I'd probably just pay it.. but I have a son in Cork so I spend a fair bit of time and money commuting there every month too. Plus to be honest I don't see the value in Dublin rents if there's an alternative - a commute down a motorway has never bothered me if it's affordable. I can also pretty much make my own hours and work from home if I wanted/needed to which helps too.

So I need a 1-bed, modern/decent apartment somewhere along the N7 corridor between Dublin and say Portlaoise. I'm almost 40 so not looking to share and no "dives"/dodgy areas - I like peace and quiet

Price (ex-bills) let's say €600/700 a month. Adding in diesel costs I don't want to be spending more than say €1000 but against that I'll have less of a run to Cork as I would be almost halfway there.

A quick search through Rent.ie shows Athy as a possible.. 1/2 bed apartments in that price range and I figure about an hour commuting without accidents etc. Portlaoise itself is also a possibility.

Is anyone here doing that sort of run from that area to South Dublin? Are my prices/times realistic given my ability to be flexible on start/leaving times? Anywhere else I should be looking?

Cheers!

bduffy

40 mins to M50 at Red Cow assuming decent speed but the reverse can be hit and miss with Naas traffic jams. .....a delay on the M50 would always add to that. ...
Portlaoise would be a little further
Kildare is 35 mins

rameire

60 min from Athy to Leopardstown leave at 7am.
if there is a bad crash on the m9 or m7 there is a way over the mountains that gets you to Leopardstown in 70 minutes
for a diesel for myself it is 10 euro a day.
broadband is good and getting better, more efiber is coming on line soon, in the Coneyboro area.
you could have rented a house in Coneyboro last year for 450 a month, no houses available at the moment ( its weird )

travel time to Watergrasshill from Athy is 1 hour 40 min going through Abbeyleix

_Kaiser_

Cheers for the feedback folks...

Having looked into this a bit more over the weekend I'm thinking that Athy is probably the best move - it'll cost me no more than staying put and on the up side I'll be closer to Cork so hopefully will get down there a bit more.

But.. I came across an old thread that had very mixed views on life in the town. While I don't want to reignite that argument, as I said above I like a quiet life, and even though I'll be working in Dublin most of the time it'd be nice to go for a bite to eat or a pint locally now and then too Also, shopping?

Any areas/estates that I should be looking at?

rameire

I can recommend Coneyboro, as that is where I live. Also Dun Na Rí is a set of apartments within Coneyboro.

Eating out, there is an Italian, the Hotel and a Chinese that a really good.

Take aways, I think per capita Athy probably has more take aways than anywhere else.

There are some pubs that are good.

for shopping, Dealz, Shaws, supervalu, xtra-vision, Lidl ( being rebuilt ) Aldi ( coming soon ), a few clothes shops, shoe shops, a good few cafes, some charity shops, pet shop, bike shop, car shop, motorfactors, pound shops, card shops.
for sports, you will be spoilt, it has everything and anything.

I think there are two or three threads on Athy if you have a look.

thelawman

I lived in Coneyboro for 6 years and loved it, I got the train to dublin each day for work, it's a long commute, the town has a bit of a bad reputation but I never had any bother, there are a couple of nice pubs and a great Chinese there, I'd go back any day

delahuntv

Athy is a decent town and there's great value, but for commuting everyday to and from leopardstown, it may be a little too far when alternatives are there.

There's still some good value in Newbridge - assuming you travel before traffic, it will take 20-25min to Red Cow.

The other advantage for you is its on the M7, so a lot easier to get to Cork - its also got a decent train service with most of the Cork trains stopping there.


edoit - just realised you are looking to rent. You'll get a decent one bed in Newbridge for €600 especially if you can show excellent tenancy record. Falcondale or Maura Donohue agents would be best.

sent a pm about one property I know will suit you.

Lex Luthor

delahuntv wrote: »

Athy is a decent town and there's great value, but for commuting everyday to and from leopardstown, it may be a little too far when alternatives are there.

There's still some good value in Newbridge - assuming you travel before traffic, it will take 20-25min to Red Cow.

The other advantage for you is its on the M7, so a lot easier to get to Cork - its also got a decent train service with most of the Cork trains stopping there.


edoit - just realised you are looking to rent. You'll get a decent one bed in Newbridge for €600 especially if you can show excellent tenancy record. Falcondale or Maura Donohue agents would be best.

sent a pm about one property I know will suit you.

I'd have to second this regarding Newbridge as a possibility as its on the M7 for Cork access. Athy is not ideal for this trip, I'm in Naas myself and its very handy getting to Cork as being on M7

NEDDURC

Monasterevin might be a good option. You'd be quickly onto the M7 in either direction and traffc to Dublin isn't too bad now with Newlands upgrade (excluding mornings with an accident on the road).

javagal

Portlaoise to dublin is only about 60-70 minutes most times.
600 would get you a 3 bed house, there is everything you need in town except for maybe a few high street stores.
Newbridge would be a great option but just throwing in pn

javagal

Portlaoise to dublin is only about 60-70 minutes most times.
600 would get you a 3 bed house, there is everything you need in town except for maybe a few high street stores.
Newbridge would be a great option but just throwing in portlaoise for value for money in houses.
I'm here 7 years and really like it

_Kaiser_

Thanks for all the feedback guys.. lots of options there really!

There's a few I've picked out on Daft in the different areas that I think could work..

https://www.daft.ie/lettings/20-marina-court-athy-kildare/1525087/
https://www.daft.ie/lettings/corran-ard-athy-kildare/1525644/
https://www.daft.ie/lettings/27-dun-na-ri-athy-kildare/1526638/

https://www.daft.ie/lettings/maryborogh-cresent-portlaoise-laois/1526696/
https://www.daft.ie/lettings/rathevan-close-borris-road-portlaoise-laois/1521017/

Any thoughts on the estates/areas involved and if they're worth looking into further would be great - particularly from the perspective of security, build quality (paper thin walls and drafty isn't great) and ease of getting to/from the M7 and local shops etc

Really appreciate your help folks

Lex Luthor

Problem with getting from Athy to the M7 is that there is no off ramp off the M9 onto the M7 southbound after Kilcullen. You either have to go up to Jct 10 M7 at Newbridge or get off at Kilcullen and go through the village and back road to Newbridge and then through the town of Newbridge

Failing that its cross country and I've done it a couple times and not so direct

bduffy

Newbridge to Kilcullen to Athy to Stradbally to Portlaoise was a busy rat run before the Kildare by pass was completed. It would still be handy to go from Athy to Portlaoise if you're looking at the Cork trip.
Athy to M9 is about 6 or 7 minutes if you're leaving early. Naas traffic on the return can be a nightmare. ..."Delays to M9 junction" seem to be permanently displayed on the traffic information signs before you get to Kill. The sooner the 3rd lane gets put in around Naas the better (if ever.....)

blackbird98

Marina Court and Dun Na Ri are the right side of town for commuting to Dublin. Corran Ard is on the opposite side of town, so unless you're leaving very early, traffic can be a nightmare. I recognise the apartment in Dun Na Ri and know the owner very well it's ground floor with patio access to a communal area. I commute to Portlaoise every day and it takes about 30 mins at peak time due to traffic. If travelling to Cork, you could turn off in Stradbally to Abbeyleix and join the motorway a few miles out, also avoiding the toll bridge at Portlaoise. Athy to Newlands Cross takes about 40 mins

delahuntv

bduffy wrote: »

Athy to M9 is about 6 or 7 minutes if you're leaving early.

Athy to M9 on the old road is 22km - even going past the speed limit (not advised due to camera vans being about) and having a clear run would give minimum time of 15-20 minutes.

Going the new route, takes about the same as its 27km, but obviously speed limits are higher.

A suggestion would be to drive to Athy or any of the other places you are considering on a Saturday morning, then time yourself on a drive to your workplace - this will be the absolute minimum time it will take.

thelawman

stay away from Marina Court, dreadful place

Snaffles2014

thelawman wrote: »

stay away from Marina Court, dreadful place

Yeah? I have a mate living there and he says it fine. Any time I've been there its been fine as well. Surprised to hear that actually but not sure why you're saying dreadful? What's been your experience of the place? Have you lived there?

nlgbbbblth

bduffy wrote: »

"Delays to M9 junction" seem to be permanently displayed on the traffic information signs before you get to Kill. The sooner the 3rd lane gets put in around Naas the better (if ever.....)

That's true. Delays flagged on those signs every day with the exception of the week after Christmas [29 Dec - 2 Jan] when most people were off work.