Where to retire in Ireland?

[radamfi]

I'm pretty sure I want to retire in Ireland but not sure where. Where would you suggest?

My preferred criteria:

Low crime
Low house prices
Good train/bus access to Dublin and airport
Near the seaside
Within range of supermarket delivery (for example Tesco)

 

[Gloster]

Although my knowledge of Ireland is somewhat out of date, I think it will be difficult to find all five in one place (as it would in the UK). I suspect you will have to rank these and be prepared to compromise on one or two.

 

[radamfi]

Although my knowledge of Ireland is somewhat out of date, I think it will be difficult to find all five in one place (as it would in the UK). I suspect you will have to rank these and be prepared to compromise on one or two.

I'm just looking for ideas for a short list. Then I can compare after that.

 

[LSWR Cavalier]

'Pretty sure', how sure is that? How well do you know the Republic? Have you spent a lot of time there?

How different is it from mainland UK? I have been to Eire + Ulster once, did not seem so strange

One has read of people retiring from the UK to Spain, living there was quite different to holidaying, some could not stand it and returned to the UK after a few months or years, or when they became frail, of course having to find a new home and start over. Very trying
Read similar stories about retirees from England to rural Wales

 

[radamfi]

'Pretty sure', how sure is that? How well do you know the Republic? Have you spent a lot of time there?

I've travelled fairly extensively, but travelling around is different to living there.

I'm talking about early retirement, age 50-55 ish.

 

[packermac]

I know there are different rules on Eire to the rest of the EU, at least about travelling to an fro. But no idea post Brexit what the health and pension implications would be or if they are proposing any "Spanish" type changes for Brits.

 

[radamfi]

I know there are different rules on Eire to the rest of the EU, at least about travelling to an fro. But no idea post Brexit what the health and pension implications would be or if they are proposing any "Spanish" type changes for Brits.

British people can move to Ireland without restriction and can access health care and benefits just like Irish people, and vice versa. We can even vote, except in EU elections. UK state pensions can be paid anywhere in the world and uprating has been agreed in the UK-EU trade and cooperation agreement.

 

[bspahh]

How far would you be happy to travel? "Low" house prices and Dublin don't often appear in the same sentence.

 

[radamfi]

How far would you be happy to travel? "Low" house prices and Dublin don't often appear in the same sentence.

It doesn't have to be near Dublin as long as there is good access. For example, Dundalk would be good enough from the transport point of view, as it has regular buses to the airport and Dublin and is on the Enterprise rail line.

 

[bangor-toad]

Hi,
Does it to be in the Republic? What about Northern Ireland?
The Ards & North Down area fills all of your criteria apart from quick access to Dublin Airport.

But it's not that difficult to get to Dublin Airport from where I am; into Belfast on the train or bus and then the direct coach to Dublin Airport (Or the Enterprise Train for Dublin city centre). Belfast to Dublin / Dublin Airport is probably easier and may have more frequent services than Dundalk.

If "near the seaside" is hugh on your list then it's worth a look. This place is within walking distance of where I'm typing:

Enjoy your search!
Mr Toad

 

[radamfi]

Does it to be in the Republic? What about Northern Ireland?

Northern Ireland is no good as part of the plan is to get Irish citizenship.

Drogheda and Balbriggan are quite close to Dublin and the airport and a quick look at house price websites suggest they are relatively inexpensive areas, but are they nice areas? Balbriggan even has a beach. There must be something wrong with Balbriggan given how close it is to Dublin yet it isn't expensive.

 

[Cloud Strife]

Balbriggan is quite rough from what I remember, and they have problems with violence. Drogheda has major drug problems. I'd generally avoid anywhere between Dublin and the border, although Dundalk isn't as bad as it used to be 20-30 years ago.

Bray is nice if your budget extends that far - it doesn't have the problems that Balbriggan and Drogheda does, yet it's got a DART connection to Dublin.

 

[LSWR Cavalier]

Have a look at Balbriggan for yourself, maybe, I do not know the place at all
I thought the Dublin government had extended rights to people living in the North. If so, Newcastle County Down might be worth a look, quite a small town, fantastic situation, mountains right by the sea, buses to Belfast and Newry for the South

How many English people live in the Republic or the North, are there many outwith the metropoli?

 

[Cloud Strife]

I thought the Dublin government had extended rights

No, to acquire citizenship, you need to be resident in the State (as they call it). They only give citizenship to people born legally on the island of Ireland in the case of NI.

 

[radamfi]

Balbriggan is quite rough from what I remember, and they have problems with violence. Drogheda has major drug problems. I'd generally avoid anywhere between Dublin and the border, although Dundalk isn't as bad as it used to be 20-30 years ago.

Bray is nice if your budget extends that far - it doesn't have the problems that Balbriggan and Drogheda does, yet it's got a DART connection to Dublin.

I thought about Bray, Malahide and Howth but they are inevitably expensive being on the DART. For the seaside and access to Dublin it sounds Wicklow, Wexford and Rosslare are the remaining options, unless I have missed somewhere?

 

[D6130]

Arklow, Gorey and Enniscorthy are also reachable from Dublin by rail within a couple of hours and have nice beaches nearby. However house prices in the first two towns have risen sharply over the last few years as they have additional commuter trains to Dublin, as well as the Rosslare services. Unfortunately the future of the line beyond Gorey to Wexford and Rosslare is still in some doubt, despite it having been relaid with CWR and resignalled within the last 10-15 years. A lot will depend on Irish politics and budget priorities. The biggest scandal is that Rosslare Europort, the largest and busiest port in the Republic, has no rail freight facilities whatsoever. Everything going on and off the ferries goes by road. if the government can be persuaded to change that situation - and also reopen the Rosslare-Waterford line - then the future of the Gorey-Rosslare section will be assured, although a lot of track doubling and/or additional passing loops will be required.

Many British people have holiday and/or retirement homes in West Cork and Kerry, including friends of ours. The scenery, ambience and beaches are very like Cornwall, as is the climate and weather (both good in Summer and bad in Winter). However, public transport-wise, you would face a long bus journey to/from the railheads at Cork, Killarney or Tralee, connecting with an even longer train journey to/from Dublin. There are airports at Cork and Farranfore (between Killarney and Tralee) with direct flights to the UK.

I sympathise with your desire to obtain Irish citizenship and therefore the entitlement to an EU passport, but I think at that, at the moment, this is only available to people with at least an Irish grandparent. Good luck!

 

[radamfi]

I sympathise with your desire to obtain Irish citizenship and therefore the entitlement to an EU passport, but I think at that, at the moment, this is only available to people with at least an Irish grandparent. Good luck!

You can be naturalised as an Irish citizen after living in Ireland for five years.

 

[D6130]

You can be naturalised as an Irish citizen after living in Ireland for five years.

That's great news........my wife and I may well join you!

 

[radamfi]

That's great news........my wife and I may well join you!

I think this is not widely understood. It is surprising to see how many people on social media say they wish they had Irish passports so they could move to Ireland. British people can still do that as before. Irish passports are only really useful for moving elsewhere in the EU. If you want to get your EU passport back, moving to Ireland for five years is the loophole.

 

[LSWR Cavalier]

It is a bit complicated, but maybe a lot of young people shall move from the UK to Eire, no need even to learn a new language, maybe even better than going to France or Germany when that was easy

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

Perhaps I'm getting confused. You've said about wanting to retire (early) or to get Irish citizenship (and if so, to what end?); also, not wishing to pry but some idea of your age and family status might also help. Also, what sort of sector are you wanting to work in?

If your budget is an issue, you have no hope with places like Malahide or Howth or Bray. They are relatively expensive, and even places close by (like Clontarf) aren't cheap. In fact, it can be a bit polarised so you have Clontarf but nearby is Coolock and that wasn't the best when I worked out there. The DART is a factor, as well as many places just being historically quite nice. You can head further south to places like Gorey and that's quite nice.

Depends how far you want to be away from Dublin Airport. There are, of course, the extended Dublin suburbs and they can be a mix from very nice (Balbriggan) to quite nice (Blanchardstown) to better than they were (Tallaght) to quite bad. And like Clontarf to Coolock, you can have affluent to deprived almost cheek by jowl.

Then you have the hinterland of places like Newbridge and Kildare where a lot of building happened during the Celtic Tiger era. They are dormitory towns nowadays but they have most things you might want or need.

I'd echo the views on Drogheda and Dundalk. With the latter, having an English accent wasn't always a selling point.


If I wanted affordable sea views, a good place to live, and a reasonable route to Dublin Airport.....I'd live in Galway. Lovely place, went there a few times with work, and can drive to Dublin Airport in about 2-2.5 hours, and it has direct coach links too.

 

[radamfi]

Perhaps I'm getting confused. You've said about wanting to retire (early) or to get Irish citizenship (and if so, to what end?); also, not wishing to pry but some idea of your age and family status might also help. Also, what sort of sector are you wanting to work in?

I am already semi-retired and plan to be fully retired in a few years when my partner retires. She's older than me so she'll retire about 55-60 and so I'll retire about 50-55. Maybe I'll still do some remote working after retirement, otherwise we are not planning to work when in Ireland. I want Irish citizenship as a matter of principle, so I can regain my EU citizenship, but also to allow for the possibility of moving somewhere else in the EU if we feel like it later in retirement.

If your budget is an issue, you have no hope with places like Malahide or Howth or Bray. They are relatively expensive, and even places close by (like Clontarf) aren't cheap. In fact, it can be a bit polarised so you have Clontarf but nearby is Coolock and that wasn't the best when I worked out there. The DART is a factor, as well as many places just being historically quite nice. You can head further south to places like Gorey and that's quite nice.

Depends how far you want to be away from Dublin Airport. There are, of course, the extended Dublin suburbs and they can be a mix from very nice (Balbriggan) to quite nice (Blanchardstown) to better than they were (Tallaght) to quite bad. And like Clontarf to Coolock, you can have affluent to deprived almost cheek by jowl.

Having looked at the house prices online we can definitely afford Balbriggan and it is convenient for the airport as well. It certainly seemed very promising until someone earlier in the thread said Balbriggan was rough. I did think it looks surprisingly cheap for its proximity to Dublin. Being convenient for Dublin airport is a nice to have but not essential. I would rather live in a cheap and safe place further away than a rough place near the airport.

If I wanted affordable sea views, a good place to live, and a reasonable route to Dublin Airport.....I'd live in Galway. Lovely place, went there a few times with work, and can drive to Dublin Airport in about 2-2.5 hours, and it has direct coach links too.

I didn't think about Galway given the distance but it does have good transport links. I think that's on the short list, thanks.

 

[davetheguard]

I want Irish citizenship as a matter of principle, so I can regain my EU citizenship, but also to allow for the possibility of moving somewhere else in the EU if we feel like it later in retirement.

Sounds like a well thought-through plan to regain rights that we've all lost as a result of the Brexit vote. Good luck to you.

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

I think that's on the short list, thanks.

No worries. Hope you didn't think I was prying but handy just to have a little info as to your motivations and circumstances.

My only other comment, and one that you'll be doubtless aware of, is always to remember that just because they speak English and drive on the left, never forget that it's a foreign country. I was told that before I started work out there and culturally and systemically, it's very different from the UK, but guess you already know that

Hope it works out for you

 

[paul1609]

Just out of interest if your of retirement age what are the perceived advantages of an European Passport?
I've been retired 2 years and live on the top end of Romney March with easy access to London and the Continent, indeed I can see Cap Griz nez on a clear day.
Im happy with my location and my other choices would have been New Zealand South Island or Canada. Don't think Ireland would have been in the top 10 but getting back on topic my top choices in the republic would be the Aran Islands or Donegal (neither of which have easy access to Dublin airport!).

 

[LSWR Cavalier]

Top ten, if one had ones life again? 'Unfashionable' Blaenau Ffestiniog springs to mind for walks from the doorstep, if one lived there one could wait for the weather

I should really spend a few months over there before moving, how is it for people with English accents? I was only in Ireland once, North and South, people seemed friendly, but how is it in winter?

 

[radamfi]

Just out of interest if your of retirement age what are the perceived advantages of an European Passport?
I've been retired 2 years and live on the top end of Romney March with easy access to London and the Continent, indeed I can see Cap Griz nez on a clear day.
Im happy with my location and my other choices would have been New Zealand South Island or Canada. Don't think Ireland would have been in the top 10 but getting back on topic my top choices in the republic would be the Aran Islands or Donegal (neither of which have easy access to Dublin airport!).

If you mean "if you're of retirement age what are the perceived advantages of a European Union passport", surely that is obvious? You can live anywhere in the EU/EEA/Switzerland without a visa.

No worries. Hope you didn't think I was prying but handy just to have a little info as to your motivations and circumstances.

My only other comment, and one that you'll be doubtless aware of, is always to remember that just because they speak English and drive on the left, never forget that it's a foreign country. I was told that before I started work out there and culturally and systemically, it's very different from the UK, but guess you already know that

Hope it works out for you

Thanks. Can I ask you why you say Balbriggan is "very nice"? I'm not too worried about the culture and I get the impression from spending time on Irish forums that Ireland is more tolerant to immigrants and different cultures than the UK and is now more progressive generally. This is incredible when you consider Ireland was famous for extreme conservativism, for example their long standing ban on abortion. My main concern is the tax situation which will be far less favourable than the UK because of there is no equivalent of the UK ISA and the UK ISA tax shelter will not be recognised in Ireland. In addition, the capital gains tax rates are higher and there is a much smaller tax free allowance for both capital gains and income taxes. But this is a price worth paying.

 

[Elwyn]

The cost of medical care in the Republic of Ireland normally has to be paid for unless you are in one of the exempt categories. A visit to A & E, for example, costs €100, and hospital in-patients pay €80 a day (up to a max of €800 in any 12 month period).

https://www.hse.ie/eng/about/who/acute-hospitals-division/patient-care/hospital-charges/

A visit to a GP is normally between €40 & €60 per appointment plus the cost of any tests they may recommend.

Of course that’s no different to many other countries which don’t have a free (to the user) health service like the NHS.

 

[radamfi]

Home

www.citizensinformation.ie

is a useful website explaining how various practical aspects of life in Ireland work. It seems pretty comprehensive, even including quirks such as the €30 a year charge for having a credit card. I've estimated it will cost about £10,000 more a year per person for us to live in Ireland compared to moving to Scotland, which would be the alternative.

 

[paul1609]

If you mean "if you're of retirement age what are the perceived advantages of a European Union passport", surely that is obvious? You can live anywhere in the EU/EEA/Switzerland without a visa.

Ive lived and worked in multiple countries outside the uk that have required a visa. Id imagine the costs of arranging a visa to live in the eu27 would be insignificant compared to the relocation costs, let alone the not insignificant additional living costs in the republic for 5 years.