I'm So Sick Of It......

Velvet Vocals

I'm just so sick of looking for somewhere to live! I'm currently living in a lovely little house with my boyfriend that's perfect in more ways then one(apart from how much it costs...€1100pm) but the landlords have broken up and one of them is moving back in so we have to move out(The joy of not having a lease)

Anyway we are currently looking to buy a house - which is a nightmare in it's self but now we have the added angst of having to find somewhere to rent until we get somewhere. I mean you'd think that €1100 a month is a decent amount of money to pay but some landlords out there seem to think that they can get away with murder. I spoke to a guy today that had a place in Portobello - sounded nice, 2bed apart on the 2nd floor of a nice building - his conditions were - No men (coz their dirty feckers - his words NOT mine) and that no more then two could share and that it would cost €750.... EACH! For god sake - come on.

Then the other day I went to see a 2 bed house in Drumcondra - which is where I'd like to live. It was no bigger then a studio apartment and had no garden and it was €1050pm - I mean we are supposed to be trying to save up to buy somewhere while were paying out this kind of cash - it's just to hard and with bills on top of that too! If your lucky enough to get somewhere with a parking space you have to pay for that aswell.Oh and not to mention wanting to have some semblance of a social life while your living there.
Is it too much to ask for to want
A: Half decent apartment/flat/house - whatever
B: Space to park the car
C:12 or 6 month lease(who wants somewhere for 2 or 4months)
Not to have go on the game to be able to afford it

I know there are plenty of other people like us out there - what can we do about???

eth0_

Erm have you taken a look at daft.ie etc recently? Rent seems to have dropped a lot in the city centre, i'm getting a 2 bed apartment in christchurch for around 1000 eur per month next month hopefully, there's stacks of 2 bed in that area and D2 and smithfield for around 1100 odd per month.

In fact, I saw a 2 bed off stephens green for 1100 p/m a few weeks ago....complete with residents swimming pool.

The_Conductor

Hey-
Why not try the suburbs?
Nice two bed townhouses in Lucan in a managed complex with multiple car parking places, a psychotic Scotsman as caretaker and varied neighbours, including a couple of Jehovah's Witnesses, tonnes of nurses and a family of ducks living in the grounds. Its 1100. Don't know about buying somewhere- prices are still stellar. You'll get a nice apartment off Boulevard Hausmann in Paris for less than some dive in Dublin. Rent somewhere for another while, prices are going to come down. According to yesterday's Sunday Business Post house prices in the Capital have in the month of April (the latest figures) stopped rising on an annualised basis, thanks to an increased supply of second hand property. However the one thing to remember with secondhand property is the ludicrous stamp duty. Its a case of damned if you do and damned if you don't. If you're paying that much rent- its the equivalent of a Euro 200,000 mortgage anyway! Good luck.

Velvet Vocals

Thanks Shane - your place sounds good - I like ducks but not enough to move to Lucan!!I'm just back from two weeks in the south of France and we saw the most impressive houses and apartments for feck all money - loads of land,swimming pools and nice towns - it's the way forward.
Anyway while we were away the market seems to have changed and there's a lot more out there for rent and the prices have come down a good bit and keep coming down so my faith in our society isn't totally lost. But I saw this place in Swords yesterday - 2 bed apartment - lovely looking - really nicely done. but it was 950pm - for swords! it's out so far.... would people really pay that kind of money to sit in traffic for over 2 hours every morning and every evening??? Would you?? is it worth it???

Mr. Fancypants

Was looking for a 2 bed a month ago. Found the prices in Dublin had dropped a hellavalot. Was able to bargain landlords down quite a bit. Got a 2 Bed in The Tramyard in Inchicore for €970pm, aparantly it was €1200 in its last let.

Try daft.ie and Ring around the Letting agents like www.kpm.ie and www.youngs.ie

The_Conductor

Hang on in there Val.
Yes- prices do seem to be coming down- good news for everyone really (apart from rip-off merchant landlords). Euro 950 for Swords- that seems a hell of a lot.
The concensus (if there is such a thing) is that prices are going to drop around 20% by the end of next year.
Another thing to keep in mind- 4 of the Dublin councils have voted on measures to raise funds for new amenities, including road building. Henceforth they will be levying Euro 10,000 on the sale of new houses. Makes it more worth your while to buy a secondhand one!
I bought mine myself- I don't care if the value drops, I have to have a roof over my head- I'm not trying to make enough money from my house to retire on
All in all- rent now, buy later seems like a good idea.

Shane

Ps- While in CL I was in transit for nearly 6 hours a day......
If at all possible try to find somewhere reasonably close to where you work- even if it costs you a little more, it'll be well worth the extra sleep in, and the lower stress levels!

Figment

I had enough of trying to rent in dublin and dealing with wa*ker landlords.
Myself and the GF got a lovely big 2 bed apartment in drogheda centre for the same price we were paying for a room in a house share in clontarf. Lovely landlord and travel time to work in dublin is just an hour on the train. Thats faster than when i lived in knocklyn and more comfortable than the 2 hour traffic jam from swords

fisty

seems like you need a lottery win to afford a house in dublin these days.

I hear prices are good in Romania:P

The_Conductor

Keep on in there.
This year we are expected to have more than 12,000 units over and above the first time buyer market- prices ARE going to come down. According to some reports, prices will fall by up to 20% (a point that would only leave us where we were 2.5 years ago- and still ridiculously expensive at that!).
There is a light at the end of the tunnel.

Saint Something- re: Swords- do you remember Erwin Nijland- our Dutch friend- might be an idea to give him a yell, he is in the same position as yourself with his girlfriend. Only reason he is staying in Swords is because his girlfriend works in Hertz.

Have a good weekend all,

Shane

GillyS

I wouldn't recommend Swords - you'll get a 2 bed in the malahide marina for around that price (maybe less if you haggle) where you would be a couple of mins from the train station and living in one of the nicest towns in Dublin which Swords most certainly isn't....

Gilly

fisty

Malahide Marina Apartments for under 1100 a month are like show boxes and the way they're built means they get VERY stuffy, a few mates of mine lived in them and anytime there was more than 2 people in the room a window had to be opened. The ventilation is crap.

You'll get somewhere Val, unfortunately you might be better off in a Share Situation for a while if you're trying to save....

try daft.ie for share options.

Velvet Vocals

Thanks for all the support guys!!!! We got somewhere!!! Woohoo!! and it's great. Its a 2 bed apartment in clontarf and it's only €900 a month (ok that's still a lot of money but it's a lot less then €1100) We saw some sh*t holes along the way and I really was at the end of my teether - but it was all worth it and I no longer have to listen to letting agents telling me that a basement flat with no windows in east wall is worth €800
YEA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So this place was €1050 and was reduced to €900 and I've come across a few like that while looking - the prices are coming down guys and landlords are more willing to negotiate now. Just stay away from letting agents - they don't want to negotiate coz they're afraid that they'll loose their cut. Don't bother with Daft if you can help it - look in the paper and the buy & sell would you believe - try and stick to adds that landlords have put in them selves.

Victor

Originally posted by Saint Something
But I saw this place in Swords yesterday - 2 bed apartment - lovely looking - really nicely done. but it was 950pm - for swords! it's out so far.... would people really pay that kind of money to sit in traffic for over 2 hours every morning and every evening??? Would you?? is it worth it???

My sister lives in Malahide, she says a lot of Swords people drive / bus to Malahide DART / suburban station (Malahide gets about a third of all DARTs and 90% of Northern Suburban trains) and get a train to where ever they are going.

The only issue is where to park. The station car park fills up quick, the village streets / car-parks have Pay & Display Parking and the Bridge Field (Malahide Castle) car park closes at dusk. Soem people park well away from the station and walk the 5 minutes.

fisty

If you park along the estuary its free, then just walk under the bridge and round the corner to train:)