Living in a van (Dublin)

HippyAtHeart · 13-08-2018 1:15am

keithdub wrote: »

Have you thought of getting a camper or caravan and looking into a small storage yard the explain to the owner your situation he might let you stay it's extra security for me also

Thank you, yes i’ve also considered this...at least the parking part of it as I think that’s what’s stumping me the most. I mean I could park late/move early and not stay in the one spot for more than a night at a time, but am trying to come up with a more comfortable solution that might also offer a better sense of security.

HippyAtHeart · 13-08-2018 1:20am

RickDeckard wrote: »

Yes, its possible.

I work in Cork, a full time professional in a good status job and live in a van.

Been living in my van for a year. Nobody at work knows.

Fuc*ked if I am giving all my money to rent gangsters and I am to old to share with randomers. I also have my dogs which stay with me often.

Best move Ive ever made.

For full time - You need a long wheel base, high roof van, gas cooker, insulation and most overlooked - ventilation, damp in a bitch in the Winter.

I choose a Sprinter.

You need a 100Ah 12v battery to run your laptop, lights and USB stuff, all charged by a Voltage Sensitive Regulator hooked to the engine. Solar is a possibility.

If you can shower at work - that is a huge bonus, I am putting in a shower /toilet soon in mine.

Build yourself a decent fixed bed with a real mattress.

You need to be willing to learn how to do the basic conversion and stuff, I had NO experience in any of this and have learnt everything along the way.

Everything is on google. Be brave and tear into it. It can be done quite cheaply, my sprinter was E3500 once I had it serviced and on the road, and maybe another E1000 for basic conversion so I can start to live in it.

Once your in it, you can keep tipping away at the conversion , by the time Im done, my van will be nicer than 90% of small apartments out there, I a have a lot of plans still.

Tax etc - Insured as a commercial and taxed as private van, this is a huge dark area , I am re-registering the van as a camper for tax and insurance before Winter. Paperwork and official Ireland is the tricky part of the whole set up.

Mentally, you need to be open minded, not judge yourself for doing it - I think I am ahead of the game here and surviving well in a tough environment.

IN NO WAY DOES MY LIFE CHOICE MAKE ME FEEL A FAILURE / LESSER THAN OTHERS. I get a kick from beating the system a bit.

Maintain your social life in the evenings - so you are not in van all the time. Embrace it and pat yourself on the back for being gung ho and thinking outside the box. So many Irish are total judgemental conformists.

URBAN VANNING:

Keep the van low key, mine looks like a commercial goods van outside, windows in the roof, none in the side. Plenty of light and no on knows I'm in here.

Parking - You will find a few spots around the place if you look, open your eyes and get on google maps.

Night Parking Golden Rule - Get to your spot late and leave early. Do not get out of van once parked for night, be invisible.

Ive had ZERO hassle from Guards, drunks , anyone, and I am parking in the center of Cork.

I am proud of the life I have carved out, I am saving for a deposit for a house, and actually getting somewhere.

My running costs are food, fuel and I do service teh van twice a year as I rely on her so much.

You will develop a bond with the vehicle, beyond a mere van.

I think its very, very ,much like being on a boat. You MUST be clean and tidy, this will not work if you are a slob, small spaces get destroyed quickly from day to day living.

I'm glad someone else is thinking this, Just do it, if it dont work out for you, at least you tried.

Think outside the box, have faith in yourself and do it, and FU%K what society thinks.

Thank you v much for such a comprehensive reply, your confidence in your decision to do this is inspirational too. You’ve touched on a lot of points i’d been considering / started researching already and really appreciate all the great pointers too. Fair play to you. Your reasons for doing this are identical to mine for considering it.
If I could rent a habitable space and be able to save for a deposit I would be doing it...but since I can’t, this seems a viable way around the issue.
Thanks again & wish you continued success with your goal

HippyAtHeart · 13-08-2018 1:25am

kceire wrote: »

Renting a parking spot usually means it’s in a private, management company controlled estate. If the neighbors see that you are living in this van, they will report you and the permit revolked.

I see what you are trying to do but I fear you’d be constantly driving to different sites and parking spots throughout the city to make it work.

Thanks yes that’s my main sticking point, the parking aspect. From a comfort (preferably not having to park late/leave early/move every night) and security/peace of mind at night standpoint. Thinking a lockup type space or something similar to park in would be better. Research in progress...

HippyAtHeart · 13-08-2018 1:32am

Xterminator wrote: »

Hi Op

it would play havoc with your eating habits and restrict your ability to cook healthy foods etc. might also take a toll on mental health.

would you not consider living in a caravan? IE you have a bed, cooking and showering facilities , TV et without the mortgage/big rent price tag?

On the surface that seems more practical alright yes but the issue I identified is that there are no campsites (at least I havent been able to pinpoint one) around Dublin / the greater Dublin area/surrounding county areas within reasonable commuting distance that allow you to pitch up for more than a few days at a time. Since i’d therefore have to keep on the move anyway, a commercial looking van would look inconspicuous and therefore allow me maintain closer proximity to the city/be in the city

HippyAtHeart · 13-08-2018 1:35am

o1s1n wrote: »

Big issue would be cleanliness. I wouldn't fancy sitting in work beside someone who sleeps in a van with no running water. :eek:

I’m not considering that an issue in the slightest. I’ve showers at work and would also join a gym to cover weekend showers. Also i’d plan to have a small sink in my conversion. I’m 100% sure no one i work with would consider for second that i’d be living in a van

HippyAtHeart · 13-08-2018 1:41am

_ZeeK_ wrote: »

Would you consider a boat?

More space & comfort than a van and perhaps easier to find a fixed location on which to base yourself.

I thought about this yes, but where to buy one (I looked around last year briefly) and where to moor it? I was told that Grand Canal Dock is closed to new moorings ...
If you’ve info / experience please do share. All suggestions welcome. At the end of the day I’m just trying to find a way to live in an affordable comfortable space (I don’t care about the size) as a single person and be able to save towards a mortgage at the same time. Currently impossible in the Dublin market. Even out in Kildare, Wicklow and Meath the rents are almost the same as in Dublin and you’ve to add travel costs on top which makes even less sense

HippyAtHeart · 13-08-2018 2:04am

M.Cribben wrote: »

Full time workers looking at the option of living in a van.
Families of 7 sleeping in Garda stations.
The system is well and truly f**ked and the sad reality is the government seem either apathetic or powerless to do anything about it.

It’s disgraceful. But I have to say, it appears I’d be better off and would have more options available to me and a better quality of life if I had 6 kids and was not working than I do as a singleton with no kids working long hours payment for which is cut in half by the taxman. Its not hyperbole...the last place I lived in (it was later sold), two women who were neighbours of mine had 13 kids between them, i knew the kids individually as they were always out playing in the road or messing around outside. Neither of the women had jobs, nor partners, yet both had houses to rent (via HAP i assume) but what really baffled me was that one drove a 3 Series, the other drive a Landcruiser and most evenings that I saw them on my back in from work they were laden down with bags of shopping from Pennys or what not, and when out walking late in the evenings i’d regularly see them down at the local chipper or going in/coming out of the pub. At least from a financial/affordability standpoint, their quality of life and mine seemed totally incomparable.

HippyAtHeart · 13-08-2018 2:07am

Eric Cartman wrote: »

Many google workers in SF live in caravans and trucks in the parking lot

that woman was offered a home and declined it.

This is the reality of city living costs now, if you don't have a partner to split the rent with , you're basically screwed.

you can get a 3 month mooring at grand canal dock for a houseboat.

Do you have info/contact details re mooring there? I was told (when I enquired, as I work near GCD) that it was closed to new moorings :-(

HippyAtHeart · 13-08-2018 2:09am

Graces7 wrote: »

There was an excellent item on youtube about this; works out better than you would think.

Link??? (Out of interest mostly)

Eric Cartman · 13-08-2018 2:11am

HippyAtHeart wrote: »

Do you have info/contact details re mooring there? I was told (when I enquired, as I work near GCD) that it was closed to new moorings :-(

The waterways ireland sote says that its 3 month mooring and you buy a pass, contact them i suppose as their mooring may be different to the other moorings (theres a few a ablut there) , there are also moorings for houseboats on the sea near the eastlink toll bridge, it would be a bit chopier but close location yet not as in demand

HippyAtHeart · 13-08-2018 2:20am

10pennymixup wrote: »

The GCD has a waiting list as long as your arm. The extended mooring permit was raised to €3500pa, and along with liveaboard insurance which is required to get the license, pumpout fee's, deposit etc you wont get much change out of 5k pa.

Any barge that you buy for a "years rent" (circa sub 15k) will most likely need to be surveyed initially then regularly out of the water for insurance. So throw on another €5/700 and try find anywhere near Dublin to do that. They don't give a permit to let any old sieve into the GCD.

Plus any barge sub 15k is going to need some serious money put into it sooner more than later. A new narrowbeam barge in the UK sells for on average £100k stg, what do you think a €15k in Ireland (if you can find one) is like underneath the waterline (or inside).

The boat exampled by the other poster looks like a dutch platbodem westlander with a top from the seventies and hull possibly older can't see if it's riveted (some of these boats hulls go back to the 20s/30's). 24v electric not 12v, no mention of a holding tank and an ancient engine that's getting harder and harder to get parts for. You'd be throwing money at it

GRP boats with a diesel heater would be a cheaper option but the condensation in Winter puts most people off. And they to need maintenance.

AFAIK there is no other extended mooring permit zone in Dublin, which is where the OP was looking (it's in the title). The next nearest mooring zones to Dublin (Hazelhatch, Sallins etc) are also full.

The nearest the Shannon gets to Dublin is Athlone. On the Shannon only a few private marinas allow/ tolerate it, and they too cost decent money. Doing it elsewhere on the Shannon and canals is done, but not legally. Waterways Ireland have recently cleared out Tullamore by lifting and impounding illegal boats, they'll be doing the same in Shannon harobour at the start of September

Living on board on a fixed mooring legally in Dublin is expensive and very difficult to achieve. One of the reasons why so few do it and probably why you never ended up doing it. It's far from a viable alternative to living in a van on the cheap.

And a canal barge as an investment is a poor idea, new ones depreciate in value, and old ones need constant expensive maintenance.

Thanks for such comprehensive info! I did briefly consider the barge/mooring idea last year but when I started looking into it it didnt seem viable costwise for the reasons (although yours are much more comprehensive, i didnt get quite that far into the research process) and when I enquired re. moorings at GCDock was told in no uncertain terms that it was closed to new moorings / all sewn up

HippyAtHeart · 13-08-2018 2:34am

Harry Palmr wrote: »

What happens when/if you fall in love? Hope he/she has a house?

Sounds pretty isolating to be honest, at some point you'll want to drop anchor.

Umm... hope has road frontage or shall we say a driveway I could park on? Haha!
Yeah I’d love to drop anchor but can’t save for one to drop when the majority chunk of my wage is paying off someone else's, so....

HippyAtHeart · 13-08-2018 2:37am

RickDeckard wrote: »

Windows - 2 of these :

http://www.rainbow-conversions.co.uk/rooflights-vents/fiamma-turbo-vent-premium-40-crystal.html

One with fan, one without.

I only plan to do this for a few years until I have monesy saved.

Paperwork - Its started out as a commercial van, Ive passed CVRT with as it is now.

Once I finish a bit of work on a few weeks, it will be fully registered to a camper van. The work I have to get done is to fulfill the legal requirement for re-reg.

Then I get camper van insurance. I have a small car as a 'primary vehicle'.

Yes, I will be in the camper van full time under the camper v
an insurance, you are not supposed to daily drive a campervan.

But that's the worst thing against the Irish state in what I am doing.

The goverment's policy pushed me into this , I want to be a 100% legal, covered and safe and legit as I can possibly be , but I'm in a grey area, and frankly this is survival.

To each their own, not everybody thinks the same and solves problems the same way.

Romance - If someone does not under stand where I am coming from on this then we would not click.

If /when I meet a nice person, for sure I'd share a gaff, if we could rent at affordable rate some whrere.

This is about me giving myself a competitive advantage in life at this time in my life, because no other fukk#r will give it to me, will they?

Haha, legend. Great attitude.

HippyAtHeart · 13-08-2018 3:00am

listermint wrote: »

I'd half agree

However the van living is a big push by folks to live mortgage free in entirety. You only have to look at the volume of YouTube channels with people with tiny houses. Trying to live a lower cost sustainable life with far more expendable cash than you will have.

It's not all this dire vision of homelessness for many it's an ideal of YouTube style living with ability to travel easily.

Free living so to speak.

Speaking for myself, I absolutely don’t fall into that bracket you describe regarding vanlife as a lifestyle choice/ seeking out freestyle living. My username is just a bit of fun. I’m a 35y/o working in a professional office job. My original post/this thread clearly states that I am considering this because as a single person I just cannot afford to both rent in Dublin and save a deposit to buy a home. I wish I could rent and save for a mortgage at the same time but a 1 bed in Dublin or surrounding COUNTIES currently costs twice the price to rent than it would cost to repay on a mortgage. Its sheer madness. You really should see what I have seen and the price it is being advertised for. Beggars belief. I’m currently commuting 2hrs each way to Dublin so that I can afford to rent a place that is habitable and safe! Over time that starts to take its toll, especially as its not the first time Ive had to do it and im older now than I was the last time I did it plus work pressures have increased

HippyAtHeart · 13-08-2018 3:03am

bladebrew wrote: »

I am currently travelling in Europe in a campervan but only because it a cheap way to see a lot of places, living in it full time would drive you mad! Ireland is way too cold, a diesel heater is a must but they make noise, chinese ones are cheap but a branded one is €1000ish, there are a few people living in a van with no shower or toilet posting on youtube but I have no idea how, I assume they are using public toilets which are not always the cleanest, and when you wake up at 5am in a thunderstorm it's nice to have a toilet onboard,
One public toilet I went to use in France turned out to be a squat toilet absolutely destroyed in crap! I have a cassette toilet in the van, you could put one in a van, but you need somewhere to empty it every few days, and there needs to be a door to slide it out of,

Vandog is one of those people who I like but says that you don't need a shower everyday and that's not what humans are meant to do etc, that is rubbish if you don't have a shower for a few days in any kind of heat you feel horrible and smell horrible,

Insurance is a massive grey area, Dolmen is a popular insurance company that prohibits the van being your full time residence, so you need an address, I doubt they have anyway of knowing that you are living in it but it's still lying to them, you need a car policy aswell,

Our van has over 100 litre fresh water tank but we need to fill it every few days, small vans have no where near this capacity in most cases, sink water goes into a grey tank which again needs to be emptied every few days, I don't know anywhere in Dublin or Cork that has this facility? Apart from campsites,

It's a pity campsites don't allow people to live in vans on site, if you were parked hooked up to mains, with a shower and toilet block and a heater you could definitely live fairly comfortably in a purpose built campervan, but living in a panel van in a city centre sounds like a nightmare,

Edit: Fulltime van lifers never mention rain for some reason, you have no idea how loud rain is until it's 3 foot above your head! From rainy rainy Sweden!

Thanks for your insightful post. V helpful.

HippyAtHeart · 13-08-2018 3:13am

riclad wrote: »

She is trying to save money,
i presume she does not want to spend 2 hours every day commuting to
a rural area.
The log cabin idea is good if you know someone who will let you
put a cabin on the back garden.
it seems a good idea if it means you can save for a deposit,
You will need to be good at carpentry or know a carpenter.
for internet you can use the tether function
on a phone to set up a wifi connection to give web acess on a laptop or tablet.
Most librarys have free wifi,and are open 10am til 8pm.
The government needs to plan 5-10 years ahead.
In terms of providing funding for council housing and set up
tax incentives for landlords to provide rental propertys in
dublin and other area,s .
The system we have now seems to encourage investors to
build student housing or office space.
Rather than low cost rental units.

Exactly...that’s what i’m currently doing... a 2hr commute each way, its exhausting and when you compare what you are saving on rent to the toll on your body and mind after 5 days a week flat out at work week in week out plus a cost of 385€ per month train ticket... it does not feel sustainable

HippyAtHeart · 13-08-2018 3:35am

Idbatterim wrote: »

would it be worth getting a leaf?

RickDeckard fair bloody play! There is actually no point in Dublin, renting any more, unless you absolutely have too. Anything sub E1500 for a one bed apartment, will be a kip. The amount of money you have to land out for the crap it gets you, is insane! from one bed apartment to several bed house...

honestly, there are log cabins, 5x5m going for a five grand. A detached property with a garden, done to your own taste. You can get broadband and all utilities from the house. No landlord, no rent hikes, no ****!

I’ve seen some great cabin options but where would I put one? If I could afford a site I’d absolutely do that. If you know of somewhere to put one on a temp basis please let me know!

Its true re. the Dublin & surrounding rental market. The places I have seen for 1300-1500+ are absolutely disgraceful. Ive seen everything from damp walls dripping with blue / black mould, a flat roof leaking in several places including into an electric shower switch and down walls with sockets, a garage not even wide enough for a car and NOT converted read NOT insulated being rented as a ‘studio flat’, a portacabin that you would find on a buildimg site with an outdoor toilet/shower across the yard clearly from a very very old house that may have once been on the site, and various awful specimens of trailers in dubious neighbourhoods... all of these examples were 1300 and above, most well above. Even given that, there are desperate people competing for them, mostly non nationals ive noticed.
As much as I accept the law of economics supply/demand, the current situation is completely unacceptable. I will not pay that type of money for that type of accomodation. I cant justify it. I’d can quicker justify contining with my current 4hr roundtrip commute while researching/starting work on a clean van conversion that would allow me save towards a property of my own over the short term while being better rested (not such a long commute) and be mine to sell on when I can get on the propert ladder... or failing that look for work abroad somewhere that has an affordable and habitable standard of accomodation within a reasonable travel distance of work.

Cyrus · 13-08-2018 7:01am

So just so everyone is clear you can afford to rent you are choosing not to and looking for what you see as a clever way to meet your basic needs to allow you to save money to buy a house?

If so can we all stop talking about the disgrace it is then this is a choice not a forced situation.

HippyAtHeart · 13-08-2018 8:05am

Cyrus wrote: »

So just so everyone is clear you can afford to rent you are choosing not to and looking for what you see as a clever way to meet your basic needs to allow you to save money to buy a house?

If so can we all stop talking about the disgrace it is then this is a choice not a forced situation.

If your definition of ‘can afford to rent’ is the need to to spend more than half my monthly wage to live in a desperately substandard living space in order to be within a reasonable distance of work, with the rest of my wage accounted for by other responsibilities, therefore no cashflow left for socialising, holidays, or similar and no scope to save towards buying my own home, then yes I suppose you can determine that I can ‘afford’ to rent. Personally I certainly wouldn’t define that as affordability.

As for ‘choosing not to’, to be clear I am considering a van or some similar solution as a last resort. Not only will finding a half decent place to rent leave me with no cashflow, there is just a dire lack of supply of habitable properties. I have viewed lots of places with an intent to rent but most were not habitable by any reasonable persons definition (see my comment on a previous reply on this thread as to the extent of that). The few that were in any way decent or that I could see a way to make small improvements to myself, I absolutely did registered my interest in and supplied all references etc., but did not succeed in getting an offer. Typically there are close to / usually above 20 ppl at viewings, some bid over the asking price. Three of the places I registered my interest in were taken by multnationals via corporate lets and those landlords did not even bother to cancel the viewings just told us on arrival! Presumably they were offered an increased amount or chose the security of a corporate tenant. So there isn’t even respect for peoples time in this situation, they allowed already tired & desperate people to turn up after their days work and waste their time seeking out places to view that were no longer available. Personally I cannot get back to where I currently rent until 11pm on evenings I do viewings due to lack of transport options/times. I’ve also looked at sharing in Dublin/surrounding comm belt, same thing there can be 20+ people looking at the room and the prices now for a room in a shared property are what you’d not so long ago have paid for a 1 bed. Astronomical. All above assuming you even get a viewing. The majority of my enquiries don’t even get a response. I’ve tried various manners of wording my enquiries etc. I’ve been told that an ad for a listed property gets hundreds of enquiries within the first few hours. You have to be sitting by your phone and get in contact as soon as the listing goes up to have half a chance at securing a viewing!

How long should I continue to spend my time and evenings like this? It seems increasingly futile. This is why I am considering a van and was seeking advice. Not because I fancy living in a van or think i’d be pulling a smart one, but because it seems like it might offer me a solution on a few counts.

If you don’t view the current rental situation in Dublin and the surrounding commuter belt as lacking in affordability and supply of habitable housing it honestly shows that you are not out there yourself trying to find a place to rent. From that perspective you are very lucky indeed.

Cyrus · 13-08-2018 9:04am

you can afford to rent, maybe not alone but definitely to share. This is common in main cities in developed countries in western europe. If you are on a std wage thats the reality, London or edinburgh for example wont be any different.

Idbatterim · 13-08-2018 9:46am

Cyrus wrote: »

you can afford to rent, maybe not alone but definitely to share. This is common in main cities in developed countries in western europe. If you are on a std wage thats the reality, London or edinburgh for example wont be any different.

Lol. The London and Edinburgh situation wouldn’t even compare to here. You show up to a viewing here and the chances of getting it are extremely slim, if you can even secure a viewing. Around three years ago , I was looking for a place, if you weren’t on daft every few minutes, properties were going up and being taken down ten minutes later, as the person advertising the property, would be bombarded with enquiries.

Cyrus · 13-08-2018 9:49am

Idbatterim wrote: »

Lol. The London and Edinburgh situation wouldn’t even compare to here. You show up to a viewing here and the chances of getting it are extremely slim, if you can even secure a viewing. Around three years ago , I was looking for a place, if you weren’t on daft every few minutes, properties were going up and being taken down ten minutes later, as the person advertising the property, would be bombarded with enquiries.

so its a bit harder than it used to be, you are looking for a place to live not buying a pint of milk.

Idbatterim · 13-08-2018 9:54am

Cyrus wrote: »

so its a bit harder than it used to be, you are looking for a place to live not buying a pint of milk.

It is the afternoon hours forum , so trolling doesn’t surprise me. Safe to save it’s pretty blatant, you haven’t had to deal with this off the wall situation Cyrus. Another typical Irish, ”I’m alright jack” attitude ... great compassion!

Cyrus · 13-08-2018 9:58am

Idbatterim wrote: »

It is the afternoon hours forum , so trolling doesn’t surprise me. Safe to save it’s pretty blatant, you haven’t had to deal with this off the wall situation Cyrus. Another typical Irish, ”I’m alright jack” attitude ... great compassion!

no i had to deal with the buy a house problem, it wasnt easy but i didnt expect it to be, theres no trolling here, people just need to get a bit of sense. Encouraging someone to live in a van and blaming the system is trolling imo.

KevinCavan · 13-08-2018 10:48am

I admire anybody who would live in a van, in the current accommodation crisis. I am currently paying extortionate rent and intend to get out of Ireland as soon as I can. There is literally no point in living here anymore.

El Tarangu · 13-08-2018 10:50am

I nominate RickDeckard to do an AMA...

Op - I appreciate what you are saying with extorionate rents, etc. but like another poster said, a houseshare would not be too expensive. Between the drawbacks of having housemates versus the drawbacks of living in a van, I think I would choose a houseshare.

Living in a van might sound like an attractive proposition with the nice weather we have been having, but I am having visions of you lying in the back of your van on a miserable Sunday in November, with the rain hammering on the roof; you've already been to the gym and all phone calls & whatsapps to your friends are drawing a blank, so nothing to do but just stay in your dark van until you have to get up for Monday (and hope that you don't need a Barry White in the meantime).

Idbatterim · 13-08-2018 10:58am

El Tarangu wrote: »

I nominate RickDeckard to do an AMA...

Op - I appreciate what you are saying with extorionate rents, etc. but like another poster said, a houseshare would not be too expensive. Between the drawbacks of having housemates versus the drawbacks of living in a van, I think I would choose a houseshare.

Living in a van might sound like an attractive proposition with the nice weather we have been having, but I am having visions of you lying in the back of your van on a miserable Sunday in November, with the rain hammering on the roof; you've already been to the gym and all phone calls & whatsapps to your friends are drawing a blank, so nothing to do but just stay in your dark van until you have to get up for Monday (and hope that you don't need a Barry White in the meantime).

The point about living in the van though is, it’s like ripping off a plaster. If you choose to rent and pay the usual bills. You’ll be putting up with a different kind of crap, ie sharing for longer ...

z0oT · 13-08-2018 11:02am

Question for the OP:

Is moving out of Dublin to another part of the country a feasible option? Although from reading some posts here, the other cities aren't much better. Could you possibly manage moving to somewhere rural? Depends on your job.

I rented in Limerick City for 6 years up until last year. My rent was 450EUR for a one bed apartment on the outskirts of the city, but I initally signed the lease in 2011, it was no problem to find places back then.

EDIT: Regarding Edinburgh, I rented a one-bed there back in 2010. I had the lease signed within a week of landing there regardless of there being 4/5 other people checking out the apartments when I viewed them. 500GBP per month for a one-bed about a 15 minute walk from Princes St. in the City Centre. I don't suspect it's like that now.

Idbatterim · 13-08-2018 11:05am

z0oT wrote: »

Question for the OP:

Is moving out of Dublin to another part of the country a feasible option? Although from reading some posts here, the other cities aren't much better. Could you possibly manage moving to somewhere rural? Depends on your job.

I rented in Limerick City for 6 years up until last year. My rent was 450EUR for a one bed apartment on the outskirts of the city, but I initally signed the lease in 2011, it was no problem to find places back then.

There wouldn’t be a comparison between Dublin and the other “cities” id say the rents are half of what they are here

AlmightyCushion · 13-08-2018 11:13am

Idbatterim wrote: »

The point about living in the van though is, it’s like ripping off a plaster. If you choose to rent and pay the usual bills. You’ll be putting up with a different kind of crap, ie sharing for longer ...

I'm sure most would consider sharing to be a lot better than living in the back of a Transit van. If you can't afford to rent on your own and save for a mortgage, then it is a decent compromise that works for lots of people.

Living in a van (Dublin)

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