Anyone thinking of emigrating?

There is a housing crisis in Australia. You need 13 times salary in Sydney to buy a house.

Housing affordability, meaning returning to an environment in which, as was the case in the 1960s that young people could buy a home in Australia and in the UK for only 3-4 times salary (it’s now 9 in London and 13 in Sydney), can never be achieved in the current conditions in these countries: whatever the planning system does.

Its looking like the UK for me.

Its all about the mentality. The British might be arrogant bollocks' but at least they have a bit of push about them, while it is clear that the Irish are nothing but cowards who embrace their own mediocrity.

I have lost a lot of respect for the Irish people this past few years, pissy little event junkies going nowhere and achieving nothing. The government is a disgrace but I don't believe that happens in a vacuum, government is always a reflection of the people and so this country is what it is because that is what the majority want.

In home for a few weeks having not been home for 2 years.

a few observations:

Holy crap it’s expensive! I know prices in the States have increased crazily in the past two years but ireland is mental. I have taken out 2000 euro in two weeks and barely have anything left.

petrol/diesel …in a word wow!

housing… I am one of the lucky ones who can afford to purchase a home and did so a few years ago. Now, I am looking at the prices outside Dublin and comparing them to places like Miami (southern suburbs), Dublin prices are on par with majorly expensive places like Miami central, Chicago and suburbs LA…it’s crazy!

wages in ireland seem as if the vast majority of friends are surviving rather than thriving.

tax on everything is crazy. Someone mentioned property tax, that’s true we pay heavy property tax in the US, however, this can be rolled into your FIXED mortgage with rates of around 2.5-2.8%, I Pay 8k a year in property tax, but I get serious services for that. Roads, snow plowing, water, waste collection and a say in how that money is spent…local elections, city meetings etc.

tv tax, car tax, now housing tax, tax on alcohol and cigarettes which is very high. Vat on everything “luxury”…yes we have sales tax but it’s around 7% in most states, some have no sales tax, it’s not 23% of everything you buy outside of groceries.

my partner and I sat down the other evening to ask how we could possibly afford to come home (my goal). We couldn’t do it full time. It’s too expensive.

how the younger generation are being screwed in Ireland is shocking. Rent is unaffordable. Mortgages are unattainable for most. It means they are locked out of starting families and making a life for themselves like we did.living at home with mam and dad is just placing someone’s life on hold.

i can honestly say, I miss home, I miss family, I miss friends, I miss the culture, I miss the food, I don’t miss government, the lack of opportunity and counting every piece of expenditure.

in the States, the freedom for me is not worrying about affording something like I do in ireland.

Ireland SHOULD be the best country to live in the world, but something radical has to happen to stop its brightest future people from leaving to find work and opportunity elsewhere.

Sydney isn’t the place people head to first anymore, places like Perth, Melbourne and Adelaide have developed a great deal the past 20 years are fantastic places to live with loads of opportunities for careers in healthcare, banking and IT to name a few. Plus, property prices are very reasonable for what you’d get compared to a property here for the same price range.

There is a rent/housing crisis in many parts of the world, it's just quite severe in this country

Petrol/diesel are high in other European countries, it's to do with global supply (I regularly travel on the continent)

Health care isn't great, but again, it's relative to other countries.

There's plenty to do in Ireland, it's really just a frame of mind. Likewise when you move to another country, you're convinced it's a bed of roses, it's only after a decent period that you realise most countries are similar and it's what you make of them. Economically, socially, politically, there are many, many countries far worse off than Ireland.

Yes you're right about all that but with pubs semi-permanently shut and MUP our culture now revolves around.. nothing at all. It doesn't even revolve around not getting covid since everyone is now getting covid.

My time has passed unfortunately. I have dual citizenship so when I was younger a plane ticket was all I needed and I was in the US the next day. Did it a couple of times when things pissed me off in Ireland when I was younger. Quit my job on a Wednesday, booked a flight on Wednesday night and was in a job in New York on Friday evening.

I’m now married, bought a house and the lure of packing everything up and setting sail is not there any more. I think in the next 10 years it could become a possibility again depending on how bad things are in Ireland at that stage. Despite all its flaws, the prospect of setting up shop in a state with good weather and a salary two if not three times higher than Ireland for doing less work is a good draw and I would think I/we will probably end up giving it a go at some stage.

I think I’d definitely like to retire in the US if I have enough money by the time I’m 60 I’ll do it if we don’t move beforehand.

I think the point is that they might end up with higher expectations as a result?

It’s a good question.

I’m living in Germany at the moment, but, as I am working remotely, I could technically be anywhere in the world. And my projects and sleep patterns are weird anyway.

Where to go!?! Somewhere sunny and with an ocean or sea and preferably with English speaking people.

Malta is surprising expensive, so any ideas much appreciated!