Hi there,
I have been to Collon a few times due to my job and although it is very, very small (seems like just one street!!), it appears to be a quiet, peaceful place to live. Motorway links are quite good as well, particulary as he needs to commute to Dublin. I travel the county of Louth extensively with my job and with the motorway, a lot of previously out of the way locations have now become very accessible due to the motorway. Ardee is quite a bustling town now with lots of property potential and again it is minutes from the motorway. As well as Ardee and Collon, you also have Tallanstown, Dunleer, Castlebellingham and quite a number of rural little townlands that he may quite like. Even Drogheda should be considered as I have always found this to be a decent town with lots of activity to keep him busy if he likes the social scene, lots of shopping centres, clubs and great pubs. He could also consider Dundalk if he doesnt mind the extra 25 minutes up the motorway. I think he should take some time out and just drive round these places and see where he fancies really. He has an amazing amount of choice and with the current climate in the property market if he is buying he may pick himself up a reasonable priced house!!
Hope this helps,
Regards