Somerton vs Stepaside

ash1511

Hi,

We are first time buyers and really confused with our current options.
Stepaside:
Two bed apartment, €330K, very close to schools, not close to supermarkets
Lucan - near Dunnes/SuperValu:
Four bed new house, €400K, not as close to schools, SuperValu close by
Commute to work, almost same.

We have a 2 year old. Anyone who has lived in these areas or has an idea about them, please share your opinions. We know most areas in D18 are nice and family friendly but not quite sure about Lucan.

Thanks!

Oink

ash1511 wrote: »

Hi,

We are first time buyers and really confused with our current options.
Stepaside:
Two bed apartment, €330K, very close to schools, not close to supermarkets
Lucan - near Dunnes/SuperValu:
Four bed new house, €400K, not as close to schools, SuperValu close by
Commute to work, almost same.

We have a 2 year old. Anyone who has lived in these areas or has an idea about them, please share your opinions. We know most areas in D18 are nice and family friendly but not quite sure about Lucan.

Thanks!

I would go with the 4-bed in Lucan if you can afford it. some areas on the fringes can be dodgy, but I would live in that area near Supervanu no bother. The only thing I supppose is the amount of traffic on the Adamstown road between Finnstown and the N4. It can be a real pain at lunchtime during the weekend, so presumably not great at rush hour either. Someone else might confirm.

Other than that, yeah, absolutely.

shanec1928

Oink wrote: »

I would go with the 4-bed in Lucan if you can afford it. some areas on the fringes can be dodgy, but I would live in that area near Supervanu no bother. The only thing I supppose is the amount of traffic on the Adamstown road between Finnstown and the N4. It can be a real pain at lunchtime during the weekend, so presumably not great at rush hour either. Someone else might confirm.

Other than that, yeah, absolutely.

traffic is getting worse and worse here! Issue is getting out to the n4. No issues coming the other way.

xalot

Was looking at Somerton myself, know someone who bought there and the houses are great quality, nice estate, walking distance to shops, chemist and amenities. The area is perfectly safe from what I've seen. Train station with decent service nearby but car traffic on the Newcastle road is always, always mental. The bus service is terrible, no direct routes to city, takes an age.

Personally, I would stay away from having a child in an apartment. We were stuck in a two bed apt. with two kids due to negative equity and it was very very cramped. You want to buy a place that will do you at least a decade (you've no way of knowing what way property prices will go) and as your child grows you'll find yourself needing space so I'd personally pick the house everytime.

shanec1928

xalot wrote: »

Was looking at Somerton myself, know someone who bought there and the houses are great quality, nice estate, walking distance to shops, chemist and amenities. The area is perfectly safe from what I've seen. Train station with decent service nearby but car traffic on the Newcastle road is always, always mental. The bus service is terrible, no direct routes to city, takes an age.

Personally, I would stay away from having a child in an apartment. We were stuck in a two bed apt. with two kids due to negative equity and it was very very cramped. You want to buy a place that will do you at least a decade (you've no way of knowing what way property prices will go) and as your child grows you'll find yourself needing space so I'd personally pick the house everytime.

eh the 25 a/b goes to merion square, the 25D in the mornings and evenings cuts out some estates. usually takes around 45 mins to get to town i dont think that too bad tbh..

xalot

shanec1928 wrote: »

eh the 25 a/b goes to merion square, the 25D in the mornings and evenings cuts out some estates. usually takes around 45 mins to get to town i dont think that too bad tbh..

All the 25s (with the the exception of the D, which is infrequent and often too full to board) go all around the estates, it often takes well over an hour to get from merrion sq to Adamstown. Compared to the 66X/ 67X its antiquated. I think the train is a much more reliable option.

ash1511

Thank you everyone for your inputs. Considering the traffic and bus conditions on the Newcastle road and the fact that the trains are always full during office peak hours, I think we might have to stick with Stepaside. It is an apartment but looks like we don’t have a better option here. Luas is nearby and bus at the doorstep, so...

Ronan|Raven

I lived in Stepaside for a long time before selling my apartment in early 2017. If you are looking at buying in the Belarmine / Aikens village area then prepared for terrible traffic in the morning.

It was bad enough before I left unless you were gone before 7:30am. There has been a few more developments built in that area since then.
You do however seem to indicate you can take public transport to work?

It was a very nice place to live however. In the summer lots of nice walks up the hills and also the new park opening soon should add an extra dimenstion.

I also work in Lucan... the traffic in the village at peak times is hell..

rm75

Where r u working ?
I'd go for the house over apt, but probably choose Stepaside of those 2 locations. Luas is jammered in the mornings however and likely to get worse with the building further out the line.

ash1511

Work in citywest. So kinda same time to reach work from both locations give or take 5-7 mins. Yes, even I’d go with the house, but the location isn’t great. Partner works in the D4, so the bus from Stepaside is still better than 2 buses/trains from Lucan, IMO.

GreeBo

Ronan|Raven wrote: »

I lived in Stepaside for a long time before selling my apartment in early 2017. If you are looking at buying in the Belarmine / Aikens village area then prepared for terrible traffic in the morning.

It was bad enough before I left unless you were gone before 7:30am. There has been a few more developments built in that area since then.
You do however seem to indicate you can take public transport to work?

It was a very nice place to live however. In the summer lots of nice walks up the hills and also the new park opening soon should add an extra dimenstion.

I also work in Lucan... the traffic in the village at peak times is hell..

traffic to where?

Im here now and traffic to luas etc is fine.
Sandyford p&r takes 10mins max @8am and loads of parking in Atlantic all day.

Sure driving into rotten would be a disaster butt no worse then anywhere else that's 10 miles away.

hmmm

Knowing both they're very different choices - Stepaside is a much nicer area in general if you like the outdoors and green spaces, and the Green LUAS is far and away the best public transport in the city, but you're paying a premium as a consequence and get far less of a property.

From reading what you're saying it sounds like really the hubbies job is the issue - the 44 bus is a bit meandering and slow, but at least when you're on it you're on it - getting 2 buses from that side of Lucan to D4 will break your heart. Maybe serious consideration needs to be given to changing jobs

Stephen15

ash1511 wrote: »

Thank you everyone for your inputs. Considering the traffic and bus conditions on the Newcastle road and the fact that the trains are always full during office peak hours, I think we might have to stick with Stepaside. It is an apartment but looks like we don’t have a better option here. Luas is nearby and bus at the doorstep, so...

The bus service in Stepaside is pretty crap 44 and 47 both only run once an hour but if the Luas is nearby that's obviously a big plus

ash1511

Stephen15 wrote: »

The bus service in Stepaside is pretty crap 44 and 47 both only run once an hour but if the Luas is nearby that's obviously a big plus

True. BTBH, dublin bus service is kinda crap almost everywhere!

Stephen15

ash1511 wrote: »

True. BTBH, dublin bus service is kinda crap almost everywhere!

It's good where I live. Bus every 10 mins to the city centre. Not many areas in Dublin only have an hourly bus.

ash1511

Stephen15 wrote: »

It's good where I live. Bus every 10 mins to the city centre. Not many areas in Dublin only have an hourly bus.

Good for you. I think the areas that are not serviced by the Luas, have better dublin buses. But again, I would go for a Luas over a dublin bus - a personal view

Stephen15

ash1511 wrote: »

Good for you. I think the areas that are not serviced by the Luas, have better dublin buses. But again, I would go for a Luas over a dublin bus - a personal view

Yes that is true for obivious reasons but parts of Stepaside would be a bit of a walk from the Luas