Living in Newbridge, Co Kildare :thinking about trading down to live in Dublin

I have been living in Newbridge for a few years now and I have looked at some of the other threads re other areas in the country. I have a nice house, a few good friends and work very close but I haven’t settled. I am looking for view points on trading down to be in Dublin or staying put and not really enjoying living here or trying to pretend I’m enjoying it!

Re: Newbridge/Dublin

Is it that you dont like Newbridge????

I think the best thing to do is look around Kildare - check out Naas, Kilcullen - see what you think suits u and your life style

Re: Newbridge/Dublin

Naas i a good quiet country town, forget about Clane or Sallins, just glorified housing estates at this stage. Depends on what you want in life, is it peace and quiet or a lively social life

Re: Newbridge/Dublin

Its not that i dont like Newbridge its that i miss being away from things that would be on my door step. In fact i prefer Newbridge to all other towns in Kildare.
Am i going mad? Do i want to much? Has anyone made the move back to Dublin and then had second thoughts?

Re: Newbridge/Dublin

I have to say I love Dublin, My mum lives in Naas and it is nice , great shops the lot..
But you'r right when we took the plunge to buy, I prefered a smaller house in Dublin that needs some work to a bigger house in the country....

Its a mater of what suits u...

Re: Newbridge/Dublin

Thanks pinky bear! I haven’t got any kids but were you brought up in Naas? Would you move back? I’m probably over analyzing everything but you have to forward plan as much as you can.

Re: Newbridge/Dublin

Hi Aura,
I was brough up in Kilcullen and Meath - I moved to Dublin 16 years ago
When I was 26 I went back to aollage -when I finished - I was offered a site in Killcullen - I chose to buy a place in Finglas - rather than move out of the city - a couple of years on we were able to buy a house in a really nice area - it needs work and it's no mansion - but what is sooooooo nice is that I can hop on a 19 or a 19a and I'm in town in minutes....

We don't have kids, but it probably is in the pipeline in a few years....

Would I move back to the country - some days I think about it - but I don't really think so - if we do have children we live near some of the best schools and collages, you will find that alot of schools in the city centre have reasonable numbers and the children have great opertunities - I am an auntie of 5 neices and nephews in Dublin and have a neice in Kilcullen...

Another thing we concidered when we moved, was that we really wanted to live somewhere that would be our "place" - not just a mansion with state of the art everything - but a place that really suited what we wanted in life....And I think we have it .....

I would certainly think long and hard about your decision - but you now not all of Dublin is mad expensive - take Cabra for instance - you can walk into town from Cabra and its very settled, there are mainly houses in the offering as well with manageable gardens.....

Anyway enough of my ramblings!

Hi Aura,
I'm from the heart of Dublin and moved out to a Co Louth village a couple of years ago. Before the month was out I was balling crying because I felt we'd made a huge mistake. Even though I got a job really close by and made some good friends I never took to it and recently we sold up and moved into our dream house in Dublin! I'm so thrilled to be back (even if it took 2 years!). I'd say you have to follow your heart with this and if country living isn't for you, get out now before kids come along and it's even harder!
HTH x

Thanks eviecarwash and pinky bear,

Your advice is heart felt and I appreciate your honesty!!! We have settled and one of us is happy. I recognise the fact that when kids come along the party is over from a mortgage perspective but I'm in this limbo land situation.
I'll probably wait until after Christmas but my heart is not here. Its funny, when you move into a new estate we all make the effort. The problem with Dublin is that its so much harder to make friends in older estates!!! Listen to me . . . I think I need a councillor.

aura said:

I think I need a councillor.

Click to expand...

Contact your local authority so.

Very good clubman, there's nothing like a good laugh on a sunday night!

The problem with Dublin is that its so much harder to make friends in older estates!!!

Click to expand...

Hi Aura,
We live in an established estate - and know loads of people - only there year and a bit.. I know it sounds mad but we have two dogs and have to walk the every pm, you meet loads of people that way!

What would the contributors of this board think of the financial implications of trading down/across from a commuter town to the city ? Say leaving a house in well established , large commuter town like Newbridge an moving to a small apartment in Dublin ?

options being sell/ buy or rent/rent ?

I think a lot of the decision is emotional/ lifestyle but implications of making a bad finincial decision could make the move the wrong one.

In my case, I would be leaving my home town where I have bought my first house , to move back to the city where I lived for 5 years while studying. Commute of approx 1.5 hours each way at the minute.

Edited to add, young free and single-- No kids !

I think the big drawback for most people has to be the stampduty. i think it's why alot of people stay put. You need to look at the figures - how much are you going to be able to sell your house for. Will it leave you enough for the stampduty on the new, fees and something towards a deposit. You need to also do a bit of research on where you want to buy, how much you can get a mortgage for etc. I'd be inclined to do the research first with the hope in the meantime that something will be done to ease the Stamp duty burden on those changing house.

Hi there
I'm sorry that you found yourself in this predicament!
I am going to give you some advice, and it might not be the best financial advice, but I think I would do it if in your situation.
I think that houses/apartments should be seen primarily as a home not an investment. If you are not enjoying living in a particular area then leave. As I said, this might not make the best financial sense but your sanity will be saved by it. i recently bought an apartment in Dublin city centre for what I would buy a 5 bed mansion in my home town down the country, but all my friends are here, and I think when i am young free and single I should be living in a smaller place but enjoying everything Dublin has to offer. There is no point living someplace that makes you miserable. I personally love living in an apartment, even when I get "you paid that for an apartment!!" from my family/country friends. I would much prefer living someplace I liked rather than in a big house.

My own

Its funny how opinions differ. I was Clondalkin born and bred, then lived in Lucan for 5 years and have since gone to live in Kill, Co. Kildare. I know they are all within a 10 minute radius of each other, and I am working in Clondalkin so I still only have a tiny commute by most peoples standards, but I am so much happier in myself since I made the move outwards. Perhaps I am the only one.

I'd move back to Dublin if I were you, but not to an apt. You'll go crazy with the lack of space, paying management fees and in general being boxed in. I'd personally go for a house if you can. Everybody thinks traffic in Dublin is bad....not if you live in the city...it's the people travelling into Dublin from outside the M50 get the probs. We live in a house in the city and love the conveniance.

Firefly, I live in a very spacious 800 square foot apartment. Theres no lack of space. I had more troubles living in an awkwardly laid out 1950's house in Terenure

i'd say do whatever gives you the free time to do what you want amongst your friends and family and be happy doing that....

its just my opinion, but i have never understood why some people subject themselves to a nightmare 4hr commute everday just so they have a bigger property with a garden.