choice of 3 cottages to buy, which do i choose?

[dubhlinn]

At USD $340,000 and change?
ONE bathroom?

Hmmmmm

I'd have to give that some serious thought....

M

Lucky to get one bathroom at that price.

Since the Irish economy went through the roof the price of property has been reaching towards the stars.

You would not believe how things have changed in recent years.

The next generation, the kids who are but kids today, they will be the ones who have to deal with it all.

When they come of age the price of even a small semi-detached house in an ordinary part of suburbia will be astronomical.

Then there will be questions asked. Then, when young people are priced out of the market through no fault of their own, will questions be asked.
When two good salarys are required every month just to keep a roof over their head and both parties know that a child will bankrupt them..

The Green Tiger will soon show his colours and I'm glad I won't be there for the aftermath.

There is a whole generation out there growing up...when they do...

Slan,
D.

[alurker]

At USD $340,000 and change?
ONE bathroom?

Hmmmmm

I'd have to give that some serious thought....

M

We're not in Kansas anymore M. That's the going rate or a bit below for a house in Ireland these days.

[SteveShaw]

I'd go for one of these

So would I. I don't think much of the car, caravan or bloke though.

[alurker]

all begging to have ya sittin by the fire on a rainy night practising the pipes!!

If you're planning on procticing the pipes you only need one bedroom. If there are any kids on the horizon you can forget about practicing .

I'd check out the damp situation either way. Get in someone who knows what they are looking at and looking for. Rising damp is always a problem with cotteges this age. The location of both cotteges would make them susceptible to damp. Cavan soil is not exactly known for good drainage properties (as you probably well know with these new sewage regs. etc.). The fitted kitchen and new wooden floor might look great now but if you've got a lot of damp it could deteroriate quickly. Nothing is impossible to rectify, but it's best you wknow what you're getting into.

[alurker]

I'd go for one of these

So would I. I don't think much of the car, caravan or bloke though.

We can always depend on you Steve.

[Whistlin'Dixie]

At USD $340,000 and change?
ONE bathroom?

Hmmmmm

I'd have to give that some serious thought....

M

Lucky to get one bathroom at that price.

Since the Irish economy went through the roof the price of property has been reaching towards the stars.


Slan,
D.

Are the wages over there sufficient to support the purchase of a home, then?

M

[dubhlinn]

At USD $340,000 and change?
ONE bathroom?

Hmmmmm

I'd have to give that some serious thought....

M

Lucky to get one bathroom at that price.

Since the Irish economy went through the roof the price of property has been reaching towards the stars.


Slan,
D.

Are the wages over there sufficient to support the purchase of a home, then?

M

Tricky one that.

The average wage over there is a lot better than the average wage over here in England.

The tax, both direct and indirect, is a lot heavier there than here so it balances out a bit in one sense.

I was talking to somebody recently who sold up a nice place in Manhattan, thinking that they would upgrade considerably when the returned to Ireland. They ended up downgrading.

People living on one wage who bought within the last ten/fifeteen years are laughing in terms of property values.

A young couple starting off today need both wages to keep the roof over their head. Should one stop earning, there will be problems.

One wage is not sufficent to keep it all together for first time buyers.

The divide between those who have and those who don't is getting wider by the day. There is a ten year wait for Local Authority housing but Mortages are being handed out daily, in their hundreds. Records are being broken at every count.

That's fine for those who can afford it all.
It is their children, if they can afford to have one or two, who will bear the brunt.

300,000 Euros + for a semi detached house in a semi detached street...and that's today in most places.
The average dude does not earn that kind of money so it becomes a two wage thing.

Then comes the baby...

At those prices there might not be another generation...

Slan,
D.

[Unseen122]

In some parts of the US the property price is the same. Mostly in the North East. I just searched in my old town for one bathroom three bedroom houses. My results yielded that the same house would probably go for the same price in the town I use to live in (before I went off to school).

[alurker]

Are the wages over there sufficient to support the purchase of a home, then?

Tricky one indeed. The average wage has increased significantly over the past 10 years in line with the strengthening economy which in turn has driven up house prices and the cost of living. The problem is that the gap between the big earners and the lower earners has also increased significantly. This means that whereas 20 years ago your average Joe (or more likely Michael) factory worker could save up and afford a house, today you would need a dual-income to afford a house if you are on low wages. The problem is exacerbated in the cities where house prices are close to double what they are in Cavan and other rural areas.

Edited to say: Sorry for the repetition of many of dublinn's points.

[Fini]

At USD $340,000 and change?
ONE bathroom?

Hmmmmm

I'd have to give that some serious thought....

M

You aren't kidding! I'm trying to buy my first home in California and it's killing me. There's nothing worth buying less than $400k!

If I thought I could make a living in Ireland; I'd be game to try.

As for which cottage; from what I've seen, I like the first one a lot. Wonderful fireplace.

[jkwest]

haha!! I'm all about heritage. If one of my ancestors had put time and effort into building something, I would try everything possible to keep it the family. And yes, the California market sucks. Especially when you own two houses and one won't sell because the market crashed out underneath you. AND, weird thing here. I actually agree with Mr. Shaw on a subject....

Owning a travel trailer has always been a dream of mine, or a sailboat..

[cowtime]

Housing prices here in the US are very dependant on the old saw"location, location, location".

Most houses in my area sell for less than $100,000. In fact, very very nice older houses(like I like) that are in town sell for much much less. Even houses out in the country with several acres are not unresonable.

The "McMansions"(shudder) around here go for about $250,000 or so, again, depending on location.

Dub, it sounds not that different over there than here. The familys that have only one spouse working to support a family are few and far between. The middle class is becoming a dim memory. Even though in my area the cost of living is low, the wages for most folks are too.

[Whistlin'Dixie]

Housing prices here in the US are very dependant on the old saw"location, location, location".

. The middle class is becoming a dim memory. Even though in my area the cost of living is low, the wages for most folks are too.

And there you have it.

If you live in an area where you can make a decent wage, you get to struggle to buy a house that in a different part of the country could be had for a third the price. But then, you'd be looking for a decent job that paid more than minimum wage, if you could find a job at all.....

No matter what, you're always in the same boat, it seems.

M

[Caterpillar Girl]

Fingers crossed for you for the first one, Flanum!
Hope the New Year helps you realise more dreams than ever.

[Redwolf]

At USD $340,000 and change?
ONE bathroom?

Hmmmmm

I'd have to give that some serious thought....

M

From where I sit, that's not bad at all. That kind of money wouldn't get you a falling-down shack in this part of California.

I second the caveat to check on the septic, however. A lot of people in our mountains are neglecting that little step, and finding that they have to spend tens of thousands of dollars to replace a failing septic system.

Redwolf