How does anyone afford to rent alone?

m5ex9oqjawdg2i · 23-04-2016 12:39PM

mvt wrote:

Slightly getting away from the OP's question is it fair to say that anywhere in Europe that there are decent jobs it would be expensive for a person to live on their own.

The problem is not unique to Dublin.

Op it's tough but doable. Pick a budget and distance to search on daft. It might take a while but you will eventually find something. Definitely recalculate your expenses. 1200 is very high imo, but everybody is in a different situation. Do you buy lunch or cook and bring food to work?

It is very simple though. If you want to indulge in one area, you have to make sacrifices in another.

23-04-2016 01:31PM

mvt wrote: »

Slightly getting away from the OP's question is it fair to say that anywhere in Europe that there are decent jobs it would be expensive for a person to live on their own.

I mean London, Paris, Madrid & so on.

Or is it just Dublin?

Rents in London are absolutely insane. I know someone paying almost 900 euro a month (including council tax) for a room in an aprtment share, sharing with two other people and it's just a ordinary place nothing special.

Neon_Lights · 23-04-2016 01:49PM

mvt wrote: »

Slightly getting away from the OP's question is it fair to say that anywhere in Europe that there are decent jobs it would be expensive for a person to live on their own.

I mean London, Paris, Madrid & so on.

Or is it just Dublin?

I was in London this week and compound the money by 3 or 4 times what the cost of what the op is trying to do, not being racist but a mass influx of foreign workers who will never buy in Ireland has put upward pressure on rental prices, so too has the short supply, its the same everywhere where "cool" or "prestigious" companies set up

_Kaiser_ · 24-04-2016 10:01AM

TG1 wrote: »

I commute from kildare every day so I can live on my own, the petrol costs are ridiculous but I can live in a 1 bed house for the cost of a room in a house share in Dublin so it works out cheaper than the option of renting a 1bed in Dublin.

It's not easy but after a disaster with a crazy homeowner renting a room I would rather give up two hours to travel than give up my sanity to a house share!

That's the other point.. I house-shared for a few years in my 20s and it was grand for the most part - but then the owner was a mate and lived in the place too - but even still there were annoyances like mess, people not washing dishes after themselves, never really being able to just "do nothing", eg: sit there all day watching crap TV and not having to deal with anyone etc

After a while this just wears you down and so when I moved out of Dublin, it was into an apartment on my own and I've lived alone since (well, except for a few years with an ex.. but that's another story

). I don't actually think I COULD share again at this stage unless it was with a partner.

But moving outside Dublin and commuting comes with its own costs too... petrol is one for sure (I do about 1500km a week all told and it costs about €90 in diesel at current rates), but you have other car-related costs like extra tyres and wear and tear which means more regular servicing.

Public transport is generally not up to the task or takes significantly longer and is still very expensive so all that needs to be factored in too. But it is also something you need to be "able" for. Me I enjoy driving so 2 hours a day in the car with the stereo up is something I don't mind (I have a big comfortable car and it's mostly motorway end to end), but others may prefer to pay the extra rent to be closer to home/work.

TL;DR: It's a trade-off. Stay in Dublin and be closer to everything but pay for the privilege and possibly have to house-share for years, or commute and have a bigger/cheaper place on your own but deal with other costs and time lost

Squall Leonhart · 25-04-2016 01:25PM

pwurple wrote: »

But the 200k of repayments are aok?

Hmmmm, not quite the same thing.

Saving a 74,000 euro deposit at my current income and ability to save would take an absolute minimum of 74 months, we'll call it an even 6 years.

In that six years, again at current rates, I would need to spend a minimum of of 36,000 euro in rent.

So if I didn't have to try save a deposit of 74,000 and could (in an imaginary world) launch straight into paying a mortgage on a house, after six years I'd have paid 110,000 on a house.

TL;DR...

Scraping a large deposit together is massively hindered by renting, even in cases where the mortgage payments themselves would be manageable.

dearg lady · 25-04-2016 02:07PM

Squall Leonhart wrote: »

Hmmmm, not quite the same thing.

Saving a 74,000 euro deposit at my current income and ability to save would take an absolute minimum of 74 months, we'll call it an even 6 years.

In that six years, again at current rates, I would need to spend a minimum of of 36,000 euro in rent.

So if I didn't have to try save a deposit of 74,000 and could (in an imaginary world) launch straight into paying a mortgage on a house, after six years I'd have paid 110,000 on a house.

TL;DR...

Scraping a large deposit together is massively hindered by renting, even in cases where the mortgage payments themselves would be manageable.

You'd have paid a LOT less than 110,000 off a house in the 6 years, a substantial amount would have gone in interest repayments

Squall Leonhart · 25-04-2016 02:11PM

dearg lady wrote: »

You'd have paid a LOT less than 110,000 off a house in the 6 years, a substantial amount would have gone in interest repayments

You're missing my point a little bit. If I lived in imagination land where I didn't have to save up for a huge deposit prior to obtaining a mortgage, I'd be far better off financially if I could magically obtain a mortage in the morning.

I appreciate what you're saying, and it is true, just a bit tangential to what I was getting at.

syklops · 25-04-2016 02:21PM

dearg lady wrote: »

You'd have paid a LOT less than 110,000 off a house in the 6 years, a substantial amount would have gone in interest repayments

If Squall was paying 600 in rent and saved a 1000 a month, it would take him 74 months, or 6 years to save for his deposit.

If instead of spending those 6 years paying rent and saving for his deposit, he could pay torards his mortgage, he'd have paid 115200 off of his mortgage.

Carlos Orange · 25-04-2016 02:28PM

Squall Leonhart wrote: »

You're missing my point a little bit. If I lived in imagination land where I didn't have to save up for a huge deposit prior to obtaining a mortgage, I'd be far better off financially if I could magically obtain a mortage in the morning.

Didn't we used to live in that imaginative world where people didn't have to save big deposits before they bought a house? Apparently it ended poorly.

Squall Leonhart · 25-04-2016 02:32PM

psinno wrote: »

Didn't we used to live in that imaginative world where people didn't have to save big deposits before they bought a house? Apparently it ended poorly.

We did indeed, and yes, it did! I only responded earlier to somebody saying something about saving a 74,000eur deposit, and I commented that the thoughts of having to save that much of a deposit make me ill.

I didn't disagree that measures needed to be brought in, but I am sympathising with people finding themselves in a situation where they've got to save up that level of a deposit, while simultaneously paying very high rent.

athtrasna · 25-04-2016 02:33PM

Plenty of mortgage threads on the go. This thread is about renting alone

Carlos Orange · 25-04-2016 02:40PM

Squall Leonhart wrote: »

I didn't disagree that measures needed to be brought in, but I am sympathising with people finding themselves in a situation where they've got to save up that level of a deposit, while simultaneously paying very high rent.

It is a fairly daunting amount of money , especially as a single person. I would find it difficult to go back to sharing after being on my own for 5 years but thankfully I have my deposit sorted from when I was sharing apartments. People really need to start saving (generically) long before they even start thinking about buying.

SpaceCowb0y · 25-04-2016 02:41PM

So i have been to a few viewings. 1 place in Swords was going for €1050 which would stretch me to the absolute limit but i could possibly do it, anyway i needn't have worried the place was a shoe box! 1 reasonable sized bedroom a tiny living space and even smaller kitchen! Shocking.

went to view another place (2 bed apt) and by comparison it was amazing and only an extra 100 extra than the 1 bed at €1150, it seems nuts that the difference in price for a whole extra room is so little and the whole apt was spacious and very liveable but unfortunately out of my budget as the landlord wasn't open to negotiation.

My uncle has an Apt that would be ideal but its currently occupied by a single mother and her two kids. its a 2 bed and he only charges her €850 which would be perfect but she is there 5 years now and shows no sign of moving and i don't see him turfing her out for me :rolleyes:

Slim pickings out there!

Michael D Not Higgins · 25-04-2016 02:57PM

€850 is well below market rate for a two bed in Dublin. The cheapest place on Daft for a two bed is €950 out in Balbriggan.

dearg lady · 25-04-2016 03:12PM

Squall Leonhart wrote: »

You're missing my point a little bit. If I lived in imagination land where I didn't have to save up for a huge deposit prior to obtaining a mortgage, I'd be far better off financially if I could magically obtain a mortage in the morning.

I appreciate what you're saying, and it is true, just a bit tangential to what I was getting at.

And what you are missing is the extra interest that would be paid in imagination land if you borrow the full price of the house (x) as opposed to x-74,000.

Look I'm not saying it's easy to save while renting, and indeed that is why so many people share while saving and can't afford to rent alone, but to suggest that you somehow be better off by the full rent amount paid is completely incorrect.

Idbatterim · 25-04-2016 03:19PM

op would you not get a 2 bed and get one other person in on a Monday to Friday basis etc?

SpaceCowb0y · 26-04-2016 07:34AM

Idbatterim wrote: »

op would you not get a 2 bed and get one other person in on a Monday to Friday basis etc?

Thats a really interesting idea but i'd be concerned how hard it would be to find such a person?

El_Dangeroso · 26-04-2016 08:07AM

SpaceCowb0y wrote: »

Thats a really interesting idea but i'd be concerned how hard it would be to find such a person?

In the current environment, not really that hard. You'd obviously only charge pro-rata rent for the time they are there.

hytrogen · 26-04-2016 08:48AM

OP my mate just moved down here to Cork and found a 1bed apt to rent after the first day he arrived. Very central for a steal in a nice area, as he says he's a 'tin ass' being Kiwi.
I know the Cork market has different factors affecting it, flooding quality of builds & location but that's not to say Dublin is any much different in that you just have to be at the right place at the right time to find a good bargain rental these days.
Most of the single bed lets in Dublin are being eaten up by "googleites" & "facetubers" around grand canal dock working for the tech companies who pay handsomely now and so can afford good accommodation and hardly use or abuse them because the company hosts all their fun activities in-house in the office.
That's not to say Malahide or Swords hasn't got the same appeal but if your anxious to get a better rent you just have to keep your eyes open and spot the right ads.
I can't recommend daft or myhome as benchmarks because they tend to have bias perception towards increasing prices & spindoctoring this current housing situation into a "crisis" & "horror story" to sell advertising so instead I would recommend you physically walking into a few local estate agents shops and going old school on it, that is, get to know the agents and get them to know what kind of person you are and what you're looking for as a client. It really is the only way forward to find a good deal. Going back to my mate, he found a place where the tenant wanted to move out due to work related issues so they needed someone to take over the lease, my mate talked to the landlord and agreed a very good price that they're both happy with and he moves in next week after just arriving down on Friday night last..

Mrs OBumble · 26-04-2016 11:19AM

SpaceCowb0y wrote: »

Thats a really interesting idea but i'd be concerned how hard it would be to find such a person?

Easy enough. Lots of people have to work up in Dublin, but don't want to live there. So they commute weekly, usually only sleep up there Mon-Thurs nights. Or even less if they can get an agreement to do 1-2 days/week from hone.

How does anyone afford to rent alone?

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