help me choose a neighborhood

gorcos

My DH and I are moving to Dublin in 6 months, (our target date is September 30) and are going to have literally only about 2 days to find an apartment. We are planning (perhaps) to fly over a couple of months before the actual move date to find an apartment, sign a lease, pay deposits etc., because here in Chicago you have to secure a place to live at least 60 days in advance.
So I have 2 questions: Is it necessary for us to plan 2 months ahead to get an apartment? and
We are middle-aged (a little pubbing, but not an out every night kind of couple) and right now we are living in a 50M square studio, which we find very acceptable. We aren't bringing our car with us, so we are going to have to live within walking or bus distance of wherever we're likely to find work. Right now we are downtown, high-rise office building type peeps, and will probably want to be near the middle of Dublin. (DH is an Irish citizen so we are cool to work in Ireland!)
Where would you look for an apartment? Would you go through a service? Are there signs posted outside of buildings with vacancies? Someplace with fairly new construction in a (ahem) evolving neighborhood?
Thank goodness we're not fussy, eh?
thanks for your kindness, patience, and assistance!

Banjo013

Hi -

There's no 60-day requirement here. However it's still a good idea to come across a few months before and sort something out, because by Sept 30 all the students in the country will have taken the pick of the accomodation as they will start back in universities in Oct.

Take a look at www.daft.ie. It'll give you an idea of the accomodation scene in the city. I wouldn't imagine you'll have much problem finding somewhere to be honest !

Good luck !

(ps - what does DH mean ).

Squirrel

I'd advise against moving to an area with very good facilities for the young as this is usually a sign of a bad area as they are trying to keep young kids off the streets. Just my advice, good luck with your search

gorcos

DH means (usually) darling husband. Or dear husband. Or Dense Headache. It could get a lot worse, but in fact I rather like the man. Having an Irish passport is the least of his charms! (anything that will get me into another country is priceless right now)
thanks

Banjo013

Just out of curiosity - why you want out of USA so bady ? And why choose Dublin ?

Cause if it's the weather you're coming for, then forget it - it's diabolical all the time !

gorcos

where it's either freezing and snowing, or over 30C? We have no middle season at all - dead cold snow, or strip naked and sweat summer.
We need a change of pace - the politics here right now are painful and we would like to see a new place and learn about a different way of living. (I could give you a million reasons; it is pretty complicated). Dublin - because it's in Ireland, and we love Ireland! And we sort of speak the language....

Banjo013

Seems like good reasons ...

Don't know how much you know about Ireland, take a look at www.irishjobs.ie for employment stuff.

If you've got any more specific questions, just ask - will be happy to answer !

You should have no trouble finding newly constructed places in Dublin - most of the apartments in the city are probably only a few years old .... there's been a lot of urban renewal and regeneration over the last few years.

Standard income tax rate is 22% for earnings under about €29k, and 40% for the balance above that.

Things that are very expensive :-

motor insurance and motoring in general (1 litre of petrol is nearly €1)
going out to pubs, restaurants etc. (pint of beer will be about €5)
groceries aren't cheap (about €100 per week for two people)
and of course housing is expensive

MorningStar

gorcos wrote:

where it's either freezing and snowing, or over 30C?

Your weather is actually bad while ours is just something we like to moan about. If we have 1 inch of snow the whole place ceases to function so you will get amusement out of that.
What kind of work do you want? If you are looking for a proper living then I'd choose an area close to the city as you have a better choice. Generally the city is broken in two by a river so you have the North side and the South side. The North is generally cheaper (with reason some will say) and as such there can be a little snobery but it won't bother you cos people will poke fun at you for being American first . I'd suggest Howth (pronnouced Hoeth )as it is beautiful village feel and well serviced by a commuter train. It would be like living in the countryside yet only 30-40mins from city centre. Malahide is similar

More info might get you a better suited selection.

gorcos

Well, right now we live in a relatively new construction high-rise (45 floors) in what is called a studio here - basically we eat, sleep, and do everything except cook and use the toilet in one room! We like new construction, and security is really a big concern (in my old pad, I was robbed 4 times in about a month!).

I think both of us are sort of envisioning a newer construction rental building within walking distance of Grafton Street, all the museums etc. That would be pretty similar to our current situation.

As far as jobs, I think that I'm going to look for something secretarial or a position teaching corporate training of some sort (which is what I'm doing here) and DH is probably going to look for retail. We've socked away some money so we don't have to take jobs immediately, but we do want to work, and we're not terribly proud/picky about what we do.

I'm loving this board already....

MorningStar

I'm guessing you have been to Dublin before?

It sounds like you are looking for some place in the city. We don't really have city areas in the same way you would have in the US cities. We would tend to just say an appartment block by the street. If you want to be close to Grafton Street you will pay more but I wouldn't consider it the heart of anything. The mueseums aren't exactly what people generallly call walking distances from each other let alone one place. In saying that I'd say Pearse Street is about right but a little rough outside the block. Mount Street has a few places too. There are tons of modern build but quite low 12 story I think is the general rule.

There are a ton of corporate training companies but most make the trainers work freelance. It can be good money if you are good or have a particular knowledge. Being American will actually help you here too, we're very synical people so positive thinking ideas coming from a fellow Irish person doesn't sound right Retail doesn't pay very well here unless it is specialised items or management in a big store

Dublin is expensive, not as expensive as we say but compared to the US some items will shock you. We make up for it by having cheap health insurance ($30-$50 a month)

Hope that helps

Intel

Hi,

I would recommend somewhere on the Green LUAS line (do a google search and you'll find some maps) like Ranelagh, Milltown or Ballaly.

I found it quite hard indeed to find accomodation. The problem wasn't finding it so much it was that it was usually taken before I decided I wanted it! So when viewing somewhere I would advise you to show you are keenly interested in it or else they won't have much time for you , Im afraid.
But keep going back to www.daft.ie and you'll eventually find something.

For jobs www.jobs.ie is brilliant for looking for a job.

Good Luck!

Third_Echelon

There are a few modern apartment buildings in the Temple Bar area, which is right in the city centre. I live at the edge of Temple Bar, so its not too noisy as its away from all the pubs etc. Temple Bar is about 5 mins from Grafton St by foot.

Smithfield is an emerging area just across the river from Temple Bar. There are a lot of brand new apartment buildings going up in this area. It is like an urban renewal program in this area with all the new buildings going up, so the surrounding area and Smithfield itself can have some unsavoury characters hanging about at times. 10 mins walk to Grafton St.

The IFSC (Irish Financial Services Centre) is also a city centre area with lots of modern apartment buildings. This area is nice enough, but its pretty dead after 6PM when everyone in the surrounding office blocks leave work. Same at weekends. No atmosphere really. The surrounding areas are not the nicest as well. I wouldn't feel too safe walking down that area after dark. 15 mins walk to Grafton st.

The areas of Rathmines and Ranelagh are pretty close to the city centre. 15 - 20 mins walk at the very most. Nice urban neighbourhoods. More houses than apartment blocks. These would be safe neighbourhoods. Rathmines would have a high student population. But there is also a good mix of young professionals and families as well. Ranelagh would be more young professional territory in my experience.

Definitely go to the DAFT webside as others have linked above. Thats where most people post available apartments etc.

Good Luck with your search.