Cheaper to live in Kildare and commute to Dublin?

teacher711

Hi all,

I will be starting work in Dublin City in September. Accommodation in Dublin is so expensive and (I know I might sound stupid here) I don't fancy moving in with people I don't know. I haven't had any luck in finding people to live with up there so was considering renting a 1 bed in the kildare area which works out about the same as what you could pay for a room in a house in Dublin.

I understand I would obviously have the extra expense of commuting in and out every day but at least I would have the comfort of my own space.

I'm just not sure if it will actually save me in the long run! Any thoughts or advice would be much appreciated!

TwoShedsJackson

It might not save you much, it may even cost you more, but having your own space with peace & quiet has a considerable value of it's own. In that situation I'd probably get the one bed and commute but only you can really decide how much 'peace' is worth to you.

shopaholic01

If you work in the city centre the commute won't be too bad. Kildare Town, Newbridge, Naas and Celbridge are all on the Arrow line, this has regular services to Heuston. After that it's then the bus or Luas.


Naas is probably the best town for socialising but the arrow leaves from Sallins so you would need to drive or get the bus that is provided. From Newbridge it is close to the town and I know there are Apts in an estate called College Farm, there is a shotcut to the station, so a 5-10 min walk depending on your speed! Not so sure about Celbridge. Also look at Maynooth, but prices are probably similar to Dublin.

You need to pay to park at the train stations now and I'm not sure of the cost.

Another option is to drive to the Red Cow and get the luas into town.

I haven't used the train in years, but it was very unreliable in winter - leaves on the track etc. A monthly/yearly ticket with a connection for the bus/luas would be the cheapest option.

Good luck with the move!

the_syco

Look at some of the nearer commuter towns, such as Celbridge/Maynooth/Leixlip, etc.

I give these as examples, as they all have rail links to the city. If you're in the 18-25 age bracket, Maynooth has a college which in turn ensures a nice nightlife.

BUT, it depends where you shall be working.

Example; if you were working in Swords, and you were living in Maynooth, you could be looking at a 1.5 to 2 hour commute each way.

Unless you have your own car, it'd be advisable to live somewhere that you only need to take one bus or train to get to your destination. Also, to ensure that there is more than one bus per hour, in case you miss "the usual bus".

Are you working in the city centre, or in the north, west or south of the city?

teacher711

Thanks so much for all the tips! Lots to take in

I'm going to be right in the city centre and I do have my own car which is good in the sense that I'm not limited to places with a train service!

I had been looking at Monasterevin as that has the train option or maybe Clane as that seems to be less of a commute. Aaaagh so much to think about!

Gary The Gamer

No offence but you are setting yourself up for one grim, pointless existence. Living out in Monasterevin on your own with no links to the town. Spending your day working in the city and then a big long commute home to an empty house with little potential for cultivating a social life there or in Dublin.

DublinDilbert

I'm not sure why anyone would commute such distances if it could be avoided.

With the cost of petrol you'd be putting min of €70 each week into the car, why not put the €300 towards your rent? Never mind maintence on the car, your time and your sanity.

doolox

.....on The Western Commuter Line serving to Connolly and Pearse Station might be an answer. With the car you would be in easy reach of Maynooth for a bit of a social life ( mostly students with the nearby college but depending on your age and profession ( Teacher?) you may be able to find some connection with the staff at the college).

Also the college would be very useful for night courses to further your career if you were that way inclined. I know nothing about the towns of central and south kildare but spent 15 yrs working in Leixlip and most people found it OK.

Huge plusses for thsi area are the Royal canal for boating fishing and walks along the towpath, accessable from Maynooth, Kilcock and Enfield.

Several horse farms (Studs) do horse riding lessons by the hour, great fun if you have never done it before.

Canoeing is available in Kilcock and Lucan.

Because Kilcock and Enfield are on the old Galway-Dublin road there is also an hourly bus service to Bus Arus.

It depends where in the city centre you are working.

Cuddlesworth

Any nice 1 beds I saw in good locations like Cellbridge or Leixlip were around 700-800. Considering the transport costs and the time spent travelling, would it not be a better option to look at renting in town in around the 1k mark.

col.in.Cr

teacher711 wrote: »

Thanks so much for all the tips! Lots to take in

I'm going to be right in the city centre and I do have my own car which is good in the sense that I'm not limited to places with a train service!

I had been looking at Monasterevin as that has the train option or maybe Clane as that seems to be less of a commute. Aaaagh so much to think about!

Do yourself a favour and avoid Clane,its a ****hole

Idbatterim

where in dublin will you be working and is giving up the car if central an option?

the_syco

Idbatterim wrote: »

where in dublin will you be working and is giving up the car if central an option?

Most decent apartments have underground car parking, so I don't see why they should get rid of the car.

teacher711

I appreciate all your comments! Maybe I am mad, I just love the idea of having my own place! Its not that I'm unsociable or anything...........I guess with all things considered it would work out as expensive as living in the city centre, not to mention the exhaustion and monotony of commuting!

Just need to get myself together now and find something asap! Wish me luck!

ckeogh

Hey,
Im living in newbridge & used to commute to jervis for work by train, one word: nightmare! It was so expensive plus the 5.30-6am start to get showered, shaved, have a breakfast & walk to train station (which is on other side of town to me) just to make it in on time for 9am. This was a few years ago tho, things have changed since then.

Now there is the option of the Dublin coach (green bus) which leaves at 10 past every hour (normally 15-20mins past the hour if heavy traffic) stops in naas after newb, and then onto the red cow & so jump on the luas & straight into town.
The bus is 5er one way, not sure if they do weekly / monthly tickets, but I'm sure if they do it will be some sort of saver option for it...

As far as social life, I'd say go Naas/newbridge/maynooth area, everywhere else is a significantly smaller town.

There are a few nice apartments available around, but keep on mind the distance to the bus stop / train station.

listermint

id be doing this

http://www.daft.ie/searchrental.daft?s%5Bcc_id%5D=c1&s%5Ba_id%5D%5B%5D=296&s%5Broute_id%5D=&s%5Ba_id_transport%5D=0&s%5Bstreet_name%5D=&s%5Btxt%5D=&s%5Bmnp%5D=800&s%5Bmxp%5D=1000&s%5Bmnb%5D=1&s%5Bmxb%5D=&s%5Bmnbt%5D=&s%5Bmxbt%5D=&s%5Bpt_id%5D=&s%5Bmove_in_date%5D=0&s%5Blease%5D=&s%5Bfurn%5D=0&s%5Bnpt_id%5D=&s%5Bdays_old%5D=&s%5Bsingle_beds%5D=&s%5Bdouble_beds%5D=&s%5Btwin_beds%5D=&s%5Bagreed%5D=&search.x=34&search.y=15&search=Search+%BB&more=&tab=&search=1&s%5Bsearch_type%5D=rental&s%5Btransport%5D=&s%5Badvanced%5D=&s%5Bprice_per_room%5D=

rather than commute from kildare, your own near new apartment, beside a shopping centre and a luas and commuter routes to anywhere.

westies4ever

teacher711 wrote: »

I had been looking at Monasterevin

Poor train service - compared to surrounding towns and as for the town it self -dead as a door nail!!! Avoid.

Having done both (commuting and living in the city) - I advise you to stay in Dublin - even renting a two bed apartment with one other if you dont want to live with loads - perhaps a room with an ensuite so you'd have some privacy.

If you must move out dont go any further than Maynooth or Naas - Newbirdge at an absolute push, if you want to have any sort of a life.

iguana

teacher711 wrote: »

I'm going to be right in the city centre and I do have my own car which is good in the sense that I'm not limited to places with a train service!

I know you seem to be leaning against the commuting plan anyway but I was wondering if you would have a free parking space at your workplace? If not you'd have to assume at least €60 a week for parking, which would be better put toward rent in Dublin, imho.

teacher711

Yeah I have free parking at work which is great! One less expense to have to worry about
Thanks again for all the advice! Much appreciated!

Grayson

Try Kilcock or Enfield. Both are miles cheaper than Maynooth or Celbridge. And they're only a couple of miles down the road. In Kilcock, you'd be adding 5 extra minutes to your commute than being in Maynooth. There are also trains. Or at the very least you could drive to maynooth and get the train.

the_syco

Grayson wrote: »

Try Kilcock or Enfield. Both are miles cheaper than Maynooth or Celbridge. And they're only a couple of miles down the road.

Avoid these two, as no nightlinks goto them. You'll regret not having a nightlink if you work in Dublin, as you won't be able to stay late at the weekends.

Skerries

I'd definitely think about getting an apartment in the burbs
something like this which has parking and it is right beside the Dart station and shops
http://www.daft.ie/searchrental.daft?id=1088513

iguana

Skerries wrote: »

I'd definitely think about getting an apartment in the burbs
something like this which has parking and it is right beside the Dart station and shops
http://www.daft.ie/searchrental.daft?id=1088513

Is that good value? My brother and his girlfriend have a 1 bed apartment in Ballsbridge for €800pm. Right on the canal, a few minutes walk from Stephen's Green. They have parking too but may pay extra for that, I'm not sure.

listermint

iguana wrote: »

Is that good value? My brother and his girlfriend have a 1 bed apartment in Ballsbridge for €800pm. Right on the canal, a few minutes walk from Stephen's Green. They have parking too but may pay extra for that, I'm not sure.

yes but is it new? ive seen some of these 800 pm inner city apartments and they are 60s / 70s trash tbh.

iguana

listermint wrote: »

yes but is it new? ive seen some of these 800 pm inner city apartments and they are 60s / 70s trash tbh.

It's not new no, but it's an awful lot nicer than most of the new builds around. I'd be especially wary of Clongriffin because Priory Hall isn't the only building in that area to be a fire hazard. Some of the Balgriffin/Belmayne buildings are also missing the proper safety installations, depending on if they are brick or wood frame. And as renters don't get full structural surveys before they move in, they have no way of knowing if the building has been checked out or not.

Apart from the safety issues, the sound insulation is also reported as being non-existent in most of those buildings. The buildings are so close together it's like something from a nightmare and there is growing anti-social behaviour problems. A purpose built block from the 70s like those off Mespil Road, which are solidly built, with big communal gardens, good soundproofing and in a very good area are worth a lot more than a tenner a week extra.

Cuddlesworth

Oddly enough I live in Donneybrook and commute to Leixlip. But at 240 Euros a month in Petrol and a 1.5hour day commute, I'd hate to have to do it the other way around and miss the perks of being near town with a longer commute.

It just seems like a waste. You could live in town, walk to work, half your commute time at least and not pay petrol and car maintenance costs.

jimmycrackcorm

Make your commute as short as possible. Life is too short to waste so much time just travelling to work.

ixus

Daft says:

1 bed apartment in Dublin 2 is 800 - 1,000 per month.

1 bed apartment in Maynooth to Monasterevin is 600 - 800 per month.

Monthly rail commute costs according to Irishrail (not including parking) is almost 200 euro if you go as far out as Kildare town or 140 out to Kilcock.

Also factor in that you may go out in the city for a night out once a month. A taxi back to Maynooth is 50 (or 40 if you can agree it with taxi driver before getting in the car).

Finally, by living alone in either circumstance, you are paying up to 400 per month for that privilege. If you're a teacher, as your name suggests, and you're not permanent, I would strongly suggest you consider saving that premium incase you were out of work for an extended period.

DublinDilbert

I can't see how it would be cheaper to commute.

You can get a 1 bed within 3 or 4 miles of the city for €800, which has access to train line, bus routes, motorway's etc etc...

http://www.daft.ie/searchrental.daft?id=123714

So you might get a one bed for €600 in kilcock, sure you'd be easily putting in the extra €200 between petrol / tolls etc..

irishguy

teacher711 wrote: »

Hi all,

I will be starting work in Dublin City in September. Accommodation in Dublin is so expensive and (I know I might sound stupid here) I don't fancy moving in with people I don't know. I haven't had any luck in finding people to live with up there so was considering renting a 1 bed in the kildare area which works out about the same as what you could pay for a room in a house in Dublin.

I understand I would obviously have the extra expense of commuting in and out every day but at least I would have the comfort of my own space.

I'm just not sure if it will actually save me in the long run! Any thoughts or advice would be much appreciated!

Your mad. Put your commuting money towards renting a place you can walk to work from. Moving in with like minded people of the same age can be great and you will meet new people and keep costs down.

doc19827

Sorry to hijack the thread,

Im a first time poster and not too sure how this works!!

Just looking for some advice/info with regards to a move to sallins/naas/clane/cellbridge area

Im currently living in and working in dub city center with my partner and newborn baby living at home in Limerick.

We have decided to try and get a home and have been thinking these areas as we rent would appear to be cheaper than Dub and also my partner is not keen on bringing up our child in Dublin city centre(no offence Dubs.

I myself think sallins/ naas area would be perfect as you have the sallins train right into heuston where i can get the 145 practically to my office door.

also it is right off the M7 for our journeys to Limerick at weekends etc

I believe the sallins train service is good??

There isnt much property to rent in sallins at the moment and naas would have more options.

Does anyone know about the bus/shuttle service from naas to sallins?? Is it relaible/expensive??

Also was wondering what clane and cellbridge would be like to live and commute to Dublin...

All tips/advsie would be well recieved.

Thanks

Gary The Gamer

I myself think sallins/ naas area would be perfect as you have the sallins train right into heuston where i can get the 145 practically to my office door.

An absolutely horrible commute. You are at the mercy of two forms of public transport. I don't know how somebody could willingly design their life around that commute.

doc19827

Gary The Gamer wrote: »

An absolutely horrible commute. You are at the mercy of two forms of public transport. I don't know how somebody could willingly design their life around that commute.

you obviously have it handy!

that commute wouldnt bother me in the slightest

Cuddlesworth

doc19827 wrote: »

you obviously have it handy!

that commute wouldnt bother me in the slightest

Taking my priority's into account, I would personally prefer to spend more time with my child and wife every day then have to spend huge portions of my time travelling for the perceived belief that my child is somehow in a better position being placed into a area with limited resources, schooling options and a lower socioeconomic climate.

But considering the tone of your previous posts, you have already made up your mind about that so I don't see the point in bothering.

doc19827

Cuddlesworth wrote: »

Taking my priority's into account, I would personally prefer to spend more time with my child and wife every day then have to spend huge portions of my time travelling for the perceived belief that my child is somehow in a better position being placed into a area with limited resources, schooling options and a lower socioeconomic climate.

But considering the tone of your previous posts, you have already made up your mind about that so I don't see the point in bothering.

You obviously aren’t aware that it takes 20/30 mins on the train and 10 minutes to my office door on the bus.....

Now that to me is not a bad commute..... I can only imagine for sure that it takes at least 40 mins for a lot of the people of Dublin and its suburbs to get into work every day??

And before you go commenting on my parenting organization skills you might actually read the post properly.

I explained that My partner and child are in Limerick and are making the move to be together as a family and that we are looking for a place that’s affordable, accessible to Dublin and would have services/amenities.

The last time I checked Naas, Cellbridge etc had everything you could possibly want.

Do they not have schools there?

I don’t know what your situation is , but one salary coming into a household isn’t that easy and there is a big difference in rental costs between Kildare and Dublin so in future you might keep your smarmy condescending comments to yourself before you go judging others.

Anyway as I said in my initial post, I would much prefer to raise a family outside of Dublin and I’m sure lots of other people from "The country" would agree.

Gary The Gamer

You obviously aren’t aware that it takes 20/30 mins on the train and 10 minutes to my office door on the bus.....

Door to door it would be at the very least an hour of a commute which will vary depending on delayed trains and buses.

iguana

doc19827 wrote: »

Anyway as I said in my initial post, I would much prefer to raise a family outside of Dublin and I’m sure lots of other people from "The country" would agree.

Only if they didn't actually know Dublin very well, tbh. I'm from Limerick too and when I was younger I thought Dublin was a terrible place to raise a family unless you had a very high income. But then I moved to Dublin and realised I hadn't a clue. Dublin is basically a mid-sized city centre surrounded by many suburbs that have grown up around pre-existing villages and towns. Many of these areas still have distinct village feels and the vibe is almost semi-rural, while giving you the advantage of living near the city.

We rent a house in Templeouge for just over a grand a month and it's a beautiful cottage overlooking a big green and river, a short walk along that river to one of Dublin's nicest parks, imo. It's a couple of minutes walk from the village with a really nice GP, pub-restaurant, a couple of other restaurants, a cafe, etc. A few minutes walk in the other direction has a large shopping centre with a big Tesco. My husband usually cycles to work which takes him about 20-35 minutes depending on where he's working. We have fairly unlimited off-street parking and all the neighbours know each other and get along really well. It's only got 2 bedrooms but the livingroom is massive by Irish standards, it has a big kitchen-diner and a lovely big back garden that's not overlooked by anyone and a decent sized front garden making it really private, so despite close relationships with most of our neighbours it's not claustrophobic.

You'd be really, really hard pressed to find anything even remotely as nice for raising a child in for that outlay in Kildare, especially once you take your travel costs into account. It also means an extra hour to hour and a half a day that my husband gets to spend at home, which is utterly invaluable. Especially when you have a new baby. I also think you also have an idealised idea of the lifestyle available to you in Kildare. Yes there are still some lovely places to live there but you will pay a lot more for them. For the most part the areas you mentioned are full of large housing estates that are no nicer a place to raise a family than any large housing a estate in any Dublin suburb and a lot less nice than a lot of the Dublin villages.

My suggestion is, if you don't know Dublin well do your research and don't dismiss it out of hand because you could have a much, much better standard of living in a nearby village suburb than you would in a more distant commuter area. Look in the pleasant areas that are as near as possible to your work and be careful about accepting asking rents as an indication of what you can get for your money if you are careful. Keep a constant eye on what's for rent on every site that has rentals, include gumtree and adverts in your searches, because the really good houses don't stay long on the market.

doc19827

iguana wrote: »

Only if they didn't actually know Dublin very well, tbh. I'm from Limerick too and when I was younger I thought Dublin was a terrible place to raise a family unless you had a very high income. But then I moved to Dublin and realised I hadn't a clue. Dublin is basically a mid-sized city centre surrounded by many suburbs that have grown up around pre-existing villages and towns. Many of these areas still have distinct village feels and the vibe is almost semi-rural, while giving you the advantage of living near the city.

We rent a house in Templeouge for just over a grand a month and it's a beautiful cottage overlooking a big green and river, a short walk along that river to one of Dublin's nicest parks, imo. It's a couple of minutes walk from the village with a really nice GP, pub-restaurant, a couple of other restaurants, a cafe, etc. A few minutes walk in the other direction has a large shopping centre with a big Tesco. My husband usually cycles to work which takes him about 20-35 minutes depending on where he's working. We have fairly unlimited off-street parking and all the neighbours know each other and get along really well. It's only got 2 bedrooms but the livingroom is massive by Irish standards, it has a big kitchen-diner and a lovely big back garden that's not overlooked by anyone and a decent sized front garden making it really private, so despite close relationships with most of our neighbours it's not claustrophobic.

You'd be really, really hard pressed to find anything even remotely as nice for raising a child in for that outlay in Kildare, especially once you take your travel costs into account. It also means an extra hour to hour and a half a day that my husband gets to spend at home, which is utterly invaluable. Especially when you have a new baby. I also think you also have an idealised idea of the lifestyle available to you in Kildare. Yes there are still some lovely places to live there but you will pay a lot more for them. For the most part the areas you mentioned are full of large housing estates that are no nicer a place to raise a family than any large housing a estate in any Dublin suburb and a lot less nice than a lot of the Dublin villages.

My suggestion is, if you don't know Dublin well do your research and don't dismiss it out of hand because you could have a much, much better standard of living in a nearby village suburb than you would in a more distant commuter area. Look in the pleasant areas that are as near as possible to your work and be careful about accepting asking rents as an indication of what you can get for your money if you are careful. Keep a constant eye on what's for rent on every site that has rentals, include gumtree and adverts in your searches, because the really good houses don't stay long on the market.

Hi Iguana

Thanks for the very informative and useful mail….
I actually really enjoy living in Dublin, ive live here for the last year, love my job and I’m currently living in the city centre in a great apt, walk to work in 15 mins every day and am near everything……

However my circumstances have now changed with the arrival of my little girl and to me the most important thing is for the three of us to be together….As your well aware there is no jobs in Limerick so the best option was for my partner who works in IT to move up and give it a shot

We are both paying two rents which is crazy

Im sure you appreciate that a Dublin city centre apt with steps etc is no place for a newborn (that’s my opinion, everyone to their own!)

I completely value all of the above and if circumstances were different I would have no hesitation in renting in a nice Dublin suburb…

I have done a good bit of research on the rental market at present and I would be doing very well in getting a nice house in or around €1,000, Im surprised by the lack of quality houses on the rental market at the moment….probably a bad time of the year too for looking with students, teachers etc….

We have decided not to rush into anything but are trying to be organized all the same.

We both lived in the Naas area about 6 years ago and found it be a lovely town so that was one of the reasons in our thinking naas/sallins.
And obviously the train access sprang to mind.
The other is that a nice decent house is between 3/400 euro cheaper than a nice house in Dublin…..thats what I have found

Now my partner will be on unpaid leave until she finds work and I’m not exactly earning a doctors salary so the finances will have to be carefully planned !!

That gets to my next point…childcare is also cheaper in kildare than Dublin (again from the research I have done )

And also my partner can travel to and from Limerick in a very handy manner!!

Currently I am getting the train down to limerick every fri and up again at 6.20 train in the morning on a Monday to be at my desk at 9.15 although its only twice a week, It really doesn’t bother me, so really 50 to 60 mins commute every morning surely couldn’t be that much of a hindrance!!

I don’t want to sound a know it all but I remember staying at my sisters in templeogue and it used to take at least an hour to get into the city on the bus??…more if I’m mistaken, that was a long time ago so it has probably all changed !!

I stayed in my sisters in Swords for a bit too and it took an hour each morning on an express bus!! More on the way home!!

I will defo keep an eye on all rentals and keep my mind open about Dublin but being honeet there is even a big difference in prices between Leixlip and cellbridge so the further in you go the inevitable im sure will happen

I suppose I came on here looking for something positive about commuting from north kildare but everyone is entitled to their speak so points taken across the board….

The only thing is are these points based on knowledge/experience or just what they think???

peter_dublin

I would say go with Naas. Moved from Dublin (Rathcoole) to there several years ago. I also have a small child under 5 and find it fantastic, Large Park in Monread but multiple playgrounds around the town, Canal for Walks etc, On the commuting side the bus to Dublin City was taking in excess of an hour and 15 to hour and half unless I took the express to get into the City with its run around Clondalkin and all the stops on the way, in contrast Bus Eireann is a lot quicker for me although more expensive.

A lot of posts on here seem to be verging on its not Dublin so its no good, especially the comment on its being a lower Social Ecomonic Enviroment which Naas is certainly not, Naas also has the newly built education campus at Pipers Hill which has an educate together, Gaelscoil and on the Dublin Side the there is two Pirmary Schools a ten minute walk from Monread, Morell area both on the Sallins Road. The train also has a free feederbus that picks up in Naas so you don't actually need to drive to the station.

Re Celbridge/Maynooth, Nice towns, Celbridge is just too small for me as Rathcoole was, Maynooth is nice also but lacks character I feel. As you said being on the N7 that bit out of Dublin will shorten your commute to Limrick rather than spending time getting from Maynooth over the the N4.

doc19827

peter_dublin wrote: »

I would say go with Naas. Moved from Dublin (Rathcoole) to there several years ago. I also have a small child under 5 and find it fantastic, Large Park in Monread but multiple playgrounds around the town, Canal for Walks etc, On the commuting side the bus to Dublin City was taking in excess of an hour and 15 to hour and half unless I took the express to get into the City with its run around Clondalkin and all the stops on the way, in contrast Bus Eireann is a lot quicker for me although more expensive.

A lot of posts on here seem to be verging on its not Dublin so its no good, especially the comment on its being a lower Social Ecomonic Enviroment which Naas is certainly not, Naas also has the newly built education campus at Pipers Hill which has an educate together, Gaelscoil and on the Dublin Side the there is two Pirmary Schools a ten minute walk from Monread, Morell area both on the Sallins Road. The train also has a free feederbus that picks up in Naas so you don't actually need to drive to the station.

Re Celbridge/Maynooth, Nice towns, Celbridge is just too small for me as Rathcoole was, Maynooth is nice also but lacks character I feel. As you said being on the N7 that bit out of Dublin will shorten your commute to Limrick rather than spending time getting from Maynooth over the the N4.

Thanks for that Peter, finally some positive replys!!!

I got the train down to limerick this evening, was at sallins in 20 mins from Heuston!!

we have looked at houses in craddockstown and to see a few in monread?

any tips with regards locations in or around naas? I know the monread is a large area, any estates to avoid etc???

Also with regards the shuttle bus do you know where it picks up or does it actually have several stops as i read previous??

Cheers Peter