Cork People: Passage West or Carrigaline?

Just wondering which would be the best area to purchase and live in? I Like both areas but what worries me is the traffic in the mornings, (be heading to the city blackrock area) which is worse Passage or Carrigaline? if I was to buy in Carrigaline is would be the Cork side. Passage would probably be in Pembroke Wood.

All info welcome!

Thanks

Traffic would be much the same coming from Carrigaline and Passage. Personally I'd choose Carrigaline. Passage always so depressing to me (even thought it has a lovely walk to Monkstown) Are you looking for investment or to buy? ALOT of house for sale in Dun Eoin, Carrigaline at the moment (dennehy (2), mcnamee, james g coughlan have one each in there). Lovely houses in quiet estate. Seems like alot of people are holding off on buying 2nd hand houses until after the budget in case stamp duty goes (unlikely!)

Thanks AB, I know what you mean about passage, I like pembroke wood but not the village it's creepy!

Agree with your sentiment about Passage at the moment. However in terms of an investment i think PAssage is a better one than Carrigaline.

Traffic is equally bad from both places

The village in passage is really eerie! Would not live there. Im living in Herons Wood in Carrigaline and there's 4 three bed semis for sale at the moment - just went on the market. There's a shop in the estate and a pharmacy and something else is also to go in. There's a Dunnes and a Lidl pening next year and there's future plans for a whole new main street including a cinema, boling alley etc.
I'd recommnd you to buy in Carrigaline.

Carrigaine is a much nicer place than Passage. The resources there are also better and are more likely to be developed in the future.

Carrigaline, definitely.
massive development planned for "village" centre. Lots of houses being built there as well, but try get Cork City side (Herons Wood etc). House prices have soared there in recent years but with the redevelopment of the whole centre they could continue to rise so might represent a good investment.

Traffic in Cork is terrible. I would recommend Carrigaline over Passage also. Make sure you purchase on the Cork side of Carrigaline though and you will avoid the bulk of the traffic congestion. I used to live in Herons Wood and it is a beautiful estate - very well finished and delighted to see that the landscaping is still being maintained to such a high standard.

You can no longer turn right travelling between slip road from Douglas to Shannonpark roundabout. ALL traffic must travel to roundabout and then turn left. This is particulary good for the turn to Grange via back roads which causes major problems in the evenings.

I have been told that some of the 3beds are slow moving which means you should be able to negotiate a good price! Best of luck. Dennehy Auctioneers on the Main St., in Carrigaline sell a lot of property in Carrigaline and update their website daily.

Carrigaline is a good spot alright and I would recomment Heron's Wood. I bought there 6 months ago and I cannot fault it. The new Spar in the middle of the estate is a godsend.
One thing I have noticed is that the house prices in Carrigaline and Heron's Wood have remained a bit static over the last 6 to 9 months. There was a few house that took a while to sell in Heron's Wood also. Maybe it's just the time of year.

Thanks guys, yeah your probably right and I think there are more ways out of carrigaline too. I know passage is due for a make over but I don't know when that will be.

Right now ,it's no contest,Carrigaline is far better.However I think Passage has huge potential in long term.It is a great mystery how Passage seems to have been left behind.

depends on how long you want to be there and where you work. C'line is the nicer and dearer area now, but who knows in a few years time. If you work in ringaskiddy or west there is no difference and i would probably say go with the nicer house and the price. As a recent FTB the prices in C'line are a bit higher and would for me be the deciding factor. Passage is lower in price and has more room to increase in price. Passage has to have a revamp with all the houses being built - thats the gamble it seems to me - will it actually be upgraded just cause it should be?. Traffic from both places to town is shocking IMO but a bit better from C'line so it depends on what time are you heading too and from work?.
gut feel C'Line but if leaving and wanting to make a quick buck (say in 5-10 years) i would say Passage could be a better bet, but thats just me.

I live in Pembroke Woods and would say the following: I grew up in Douglas in the '70s and Carrigaline was pretty bad back then as was Passage. C'line has come on no end and this is reflected in the prices of houses. Passage was hamstrung by a thing called the Seveso 2 directive and this basically meant that because it was too close to a fertilizer factory (IFI at Marino Pt) new residential development in town was prohibited by the EU directive (relates to a big fertilizer plant accident in Italy in the 1970s where many died). However, the plant is closed thanks to high gas prices and is being shipped to Chile bit by bit. The land there has been sold so that will allow development to go on. The docks in passage have been sold to Howard holdings (whose main director is from Passage) for €30m and a €200m development is planned for this 12 acre site in the town complete with marina and new river front road. Howard Holdings have a good reputation for developments. They also own the convent in the town (big one off houses planned in the site with good views), some land in Glenbrook has been sold (30 acres) for €20m for more housing at the eastern end of town and O'Flynns (of Mt Oval fame) are busy building and selling 550 houses next to Pembroke Woods (they are marketed as Rochestown Rd - go figure!!). I have been there since early 2001 and have moved to a detached house in the estate. I like living there but the town is a dump. Traffic in the morning is heavy but it's less than 3 miles to the link or a 25 min cycle to Blackrock on the old railway line. With the upcoming developments it should fulfill its potential. C'line is nice too with its own attractions (close to beach, crosshaven, good shops) but that's the premium in the house prices.

Carrigaline beats Passage hands down for facilities but traffic would be somewhat similar. However, if you didn't mind cycling you could cycle across the the old line from Rochestown to Blackrock in no time flat.

I've noticed a great improvement in traffic heading from Carrigaline to the Wilton and back. Right turns are prohibited at the top of Carrs Hill onto the little boreen and from the boreen out onto the main road. And the new Kinsale Rd flyover is a godsend.
These two improvements have halved my commute time.

Thanks Guys,

A few that would be in the 'know' have said to us that Passage would be better in the long run, in terms of investment potential. I do know a few people living in Pembroke Wood and they like the estate...so I think I steering more towards Passage for now...although there seems to be some good deals in Carragline at the moment, prices aren't as high as they once were.

Hi I spent my teenage years growing up in Passage, my family still live there. I now live in the city but I would jump at the chance to move back to Passage. It is a bit run down but this is slowly changing. The new development on the quays is going to catapult Passage into being a desirable area and this is going to up the property prices too. If I was an investor this is where I would buy. I dont know if you have seen the plans but having read about them in the examiner recently they sound fabulous. Pembroke woods wouldnt be my first choice though. There are some lovely houses after being built up at the top of church hill. Avondale mews I think they are called. They are quite reasonable too. I allways felt safe in Passage in fact the gaurds have said it is one of the quitest towns in Cork - a local told me that so please dont quote me!! The only thing I dont like about Passage is the amount of pubs which in turn means there can be a lot of drunks staggering around after closing time but I suppose that is the same everywhere! There is a lovely playground for children after being built also. Another benifit is the walk along the river which goes to Monkstown in one direction or blackrock in the other direction. I work in Mahon and during the summer a good few people cycle down the walkway from Passage to Mahon in order to get to work. A bit too energetic for me though! It is hard to judge the traffic at the moment due to the diversion up Clarkes hill - this is causing long delays, but hopefully this will be finished in the New Year. Hope this helps some bit!