Moving to Tyrone from the South. Advice needed?

pedro7

Hi all, I'm moving up to Omagh in a month for work. I've never really had anything to do with NI or the Uk regarding work. I've a few questions...

What banks are best to join?

Will my Irish driving licence be acceptable for insurance companies up there when I eventually buy a car in NI? Or would I be better off doing a driving test up there? also will they recognise my no claims bonus from the south?

Are there any areas to avoid renting in if possible?

Are there any funny taxes I should be aware of? (We have the USC down here. 4% off all monies earned!) I heard something about a poll tax?

Any other advice would be really greatly appreciated! I would imagine there are loads of people who have gone through this before me.

Thanks folks!

pow wow

The banks are much of a muchness so whichever is closer/handiest/has the nicest ATM card really. There are oodles to choose from eg. Ulster Bank, Bank of Ireland, First Trust (AIB affiliate), Northern, the more mainland UK banks like Santander etc.

You don't need an NI licence but you can if you want exchange your ROI one for an NI one without having to take a test (assuming it's a full licence you have). The fee for that is currently £50. Insurers will recognise your Irish NCB but some may rate it differently (i.e. your insurance will be more expensive). You'll find it difficult to get an insurer in NI/UK to cover a car with ROI plates so if your move is permanent getting an NI car wouldn't be the worst idea.

There are no extra taxes at the point you're paid your salary beyond tax/national insurance. There's a good calculator here that will illustrate your net income after deductions if you type in your gross annual salary. The only charge I can think of that the 'poll' tax might refer to is property rates which fund public services (a similar idea to council tax in England). If you're planning on renting then it's worth asking if rents include the rates or if you're expected to pay the rates yourself.

A good website for general info is the Border People site here. I've never lived in Omagh so can't help with the housing suggestions - I'm sure the Tyrone boardsies will be much more helpful.

pedro7

Thanks for the help Pow wow. Do you know what websites are best to find rooms to rent in Omagh? I'm not having much luck with google.

paulgalway

You could try here

pedro7

It was more house shares I was after, I can afford to rent on my own.

I dont know

Hi pedro7.
I'm from Omagh although now living in Belfast but should be able to answer any questions you have about the town.

As pow wow has mentioned, banks are 'much of a muchness' but I'd recommend Santander as its a big European bank, so its always useful to have a local branch in most European cities when travelling. Also they don't rip you off for using your card down south

Its not a 'mainland UK bank' BTW although Santander bought Abbey, Bradford & Bingley and Alliance & Leicester which is why many towns here & in Britain have 2 or 3 branches in them.

There aren't really any areas to avoid renting. I suppose there are some housing estates that I'd avoid, but you'll know when you go to view the place if its good or not. Omagh wouldn't have the sectarian problems that other towns would have, so its not like there are unionist or nationalist areas to be avoided


Below are the websites you might want to check.
http://www.omarentals.co.uk - this is the main rental agent in town
http://www.corryandstewart.com
http://www.gumtree.com/county-tyrone - might be your best option for a house share.

Any other questions, feel free to PM me

pow wow

To clarify, I classed Santander as a 'more mainland UK bank' as it's not an indigenous NI bank. I banked with them when they were Abbey in England for years and would second your recommendation

pedro7

Thanks for all the advice guys. I've been on to the revenue people about a national insurance number, I cant do anything about that or the bank account until I have an address up there.

Which leads me to a small problem, I'll only be earning £290 after tax, I could comfortably afford to share in a house I think. However, there arn't many shares in Omagh, only 1 recent one on the internet as far as I can see.

There are plenty of cheap 1 bed appartments going though, but could you tell me roughly what the cost of living would be in one of these? Bins, electricity, tc licence, rates etc?

Thanks a mill!!

pow wow

Rates are based on property value so they could be anything really. I would think £50 a month (i.e. £600 a year) would be on the higher end of things for Omagh but at least if you overestimate you get a pleasant surprise when the bill does arrive. If you want to be really thorough you can put the property details in here, get the rateable value and then put that in the rates calculator section on this website. TV licence would be £24 a month by direct debit for 6 months (£145.50 a year - if using direct debit you have to pay for your 1st one in 6 installments...no idea why!). Electricity maybe £30 a month on average as a ball park figure. Bins are included in your rates bill.

So for the first 6 months at least, including the TV licence, you're talking £104 on top of your rent, not including phones, broadband etc.

I dont know

Unfortunately the people of Omagh haven’t taken to using free adverts online as well as I had hoped
Your next best option would be to check the adverts in the Ulster Herald. You can buy an online edition, but may be best emailing them first to make sure the classifieds are available in this version.

You’ll have to pay a higher tax code for the first month or so until you get the national insurance no. etc, but then you’ll get the tax you overpaid back afaik

1 bed apartments are grand, but if you’re moving up on your own it’d probably be to your benefit to move in with others, even if its just so you know some people outside of work to socialise with.

The landloard will (nearly always) pay the rates, and this covers bins, water etc. Don’t worry about the TV license until they come knocking As for electricity, well it really depends on how much you use, although the price of it is likely to increase soon.

nbk120280

Hi Pedro7. Just wondering how you got on with your move to Omagh and with work etc? Looks like I'll be making the same move to Omagh from the south for work and have to start looking for accom, the bank business, etc so your thread has been helpful, cheers. Any advice now that you've probably settled in?

Cheers

pedro7

nbk120280 wrote: »

Hi Pedro7. Just wondering how you got on with your move to Omagh and with work etc? Looks like I'll be making the same move to Omagh from the south for work and have to start looking for accom, the bank business, etc so your thread has been helpful, cheers. Any advice now that you've probably settled in?

Cheers

Hi there,

Moving to the north is fine, at least out to Omagh has been for me anyway. The people here are as friendly as down at home, though the accents can be hard to understand for the first month or so. If your moving to Omagh be prepared to hear 'wild' a lot. LOL.

Anyway,
Accomodation have a look on here:
http://www.gumtree.com/belfast
http://www.gumtree.com/county-tyrone

They are the main two and where I found my house. They don't really use daft.ie like we do, but its definitely worth a look. The local paper comes out on Wednesdays or Thursdays I think but it usually has a few rooms in it.

Dont be too worried about good and bad areas, 95% of Omagh is very friendly. Try and stay clear of the hospital road if you can its a nice area and 99% of people there are great but theres a few who might still hold a grudge against you coming from the Republic.

Rent is varried in price but like anywhere you'll get what you pay for. Mines £70/week for a double room in a house with 2 others and includes all bills. Inc broadband. Its also in quite an up market estate. Some places I viewed were only £50/week. Just to give you an idea of what to expect.

Banking wise, like me I assume you'll spend a good portion of your income in the Republic, for this I set up an bank acc with National Irish Bank in the south and Northern Bank in the North. Both members of the Danske bank group and so give you free transfers across the boarder! You'd be surprised the difference that makes no transaction fees at atms etc.
Bring your passport and some other proof of address and photo ID to set up your acc up here, even if you haven't got an address in the north with a letter from the employer they will let you open an account to get you going.

To get a National insurance number set up you need to contact the Omagh jobs and benefits office and arrange a meeting. Try and do this for a date after you start work and again have a letter confirming your employment and plenty of ID. For that you will need an address in the north.

I found my sat nav an absolute god send in the first month or so, getting around up here can be tricky with out it.

Oh if your driving make sure your tax/nct/insurance is in date, the Police up here dont take excuses like our guards at home. If you dont have the disc in date they'll fine you.

If you think of anything else at all leave a post here or feel free to PM me and I'll help anyway I can. When are you moving up? I'll try get a copy of the paper and send you contact details of ads if you like.

muffler

Good post pedro7. Well done