Leitrim or Sligo?

NElass

Hello!
My two teenage boys and I will be moving to Ireland next summer, and would like opinions on which county would best suit our needs. We would like to buy a house with a few acres in either Co Leitrim or Co Sligo, as I hope to build a small organic self sufficient farm, with the possibility of selling at farmers markets.
Any advice would be very much appreciated!

stevemul

Hi NElass, assuming the clue is in the name, you're moving from the Newcastle area to Ireland eh?

My wife is from Jarrow and we moved here to the Leitrim area 5 years ago. We live near Carrick on Shannon which is a beautiful area. Very quiet out of town but lively enough in the town for your teenage sons!

There is a farmer's market in town every week ( Thursdays?) and with it being a tourist spot, you would have the benefit of these customers through the summer.

House and land values are still low around here also so you could bag a bargain I'm sure! Good luck
Steve

OldRio

Hi, I second steves post. We also live in Leitrim, near to Ballinamore. A great time to buy a small cottage and land.
We have a small farm with horses and pigs and various poultry. We also grow most of our own vegetables.
It's a great life but hard work. Everyone in the family needs to buy into your life choice. You are tied to land and animals. No family holidays unfortunately.

NElass

Gentlemen, thank you so much for sharing your thoughts and views, it really is very much appreciated!

Leitrim is roughly the size of my home county, and the terrain looks as though it shares many similarities; one of its many appeals. Ideally we would like somewhere very rural, with a town around a 30 minute drive away. Are there any notable differences/advantages between the North and South of the County that you could speak of?

@ Steve, good guess! I'm originally from Northumberland, but we currently live in the States! It's nice to know there will be another northern lass in the area :-)

SafeSurfer

North Leitrim is closer to the coast. Surfing for the boys etc. Carrick is a great buzzy town. South Leitrim is closer to Dublin. Scenery in the north around Glenade is beautiful.

NElass

SafeSurfer thank you for the insight...I'm sure my boys will be rooting for the coastal area!

fergalfrog

Hi,

I was in a similar position as you when I posted this: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055501866 "Where should we live?"

We moved to Carrick on Shannon five years ago and it is a great place to live.

Two things I would mention however. Spend a week or more (renting) somewhere. Calling to a place for an hour or two does not give you a clear picture of what it is like to live there.

Secondly don't assume you will find what you want to buy. I have been running this offer since September 2013 http://glicnet.com/reward and still have nothing. People assume there is plenty for sale in Leitrim. There is plenty in estates in towns etc but very little family homes that are close to a town. We have been looking to buy for about 4 years now!

Best of luck with it all!

Kovu

Howdy NElass. Welcome to boards & a future welcome to Ireland

I've lived in SLeitrim for all my life, minus college years. There's quite a difference in land type, south Leitrim having flatter land, similar to Longford.
As Fergalfrog mentioned above, it can be hard to find the right place though. Especially as it's so difficult these days to get planning permission in the county. Somewhere very rural? I think I could qualify for that.....we're 8km from the closest small town and half an hour from both Carrick and Longford.
A lot of places aren't actually advertised online though, the older generation here seem to prefer word of mouth from my experience. Renting might be the best place to start out, until you find an area which suits. There are a lot of little hidden areas around the county that you nearly have to get lost to explore

magnumlady

You posted this on the Leitrim thread so are likely to get all Leitrim comments.
On a Sligo note as you are looking for farmers markets at the moment there is the Sligo Farmer's Market at the IT, Rathcormac food and craft market, Beltra Country Market all on Saturday.
Strandhill People's Market on Sunday.
Plus some beautiful beaches, forests, lakes and more.

Kettleson

If it were me, with 2 teenage boys, I'd be moving to Sligo. Of course, living in Sligo with 3 teenage kids I would say that, but I just think Sligo might have more to offer them especially if they are into water sports.

Show them a few links of both places you are considering and get them to do a bit of research and so be part of the decision making process.