... Having strong ties in both countries has made settling in one place hard for us. Just to touch on some of your points: re #1: I agree. CA is so expensive, and even though pay is far lower in Ireland, I always felt better off living in Ireland than in CA. There just seems to be higher bills, and more of them. Sounds like you don't have kids yet, but when you do, medical costs can rocket, which makes life even harder. Even with a good medical insurance plan, out-of-pocket costs are too high! re #2: I've seen discussions on this topic on other sites, and t ...

... which is one of the most expensive places to live in terms of rent/property costs, taxes etc. Basically everything costs more. We think that by moving to Ireland costs there will be comparable if not cheaper when we take into account changes to income which are likely to occur. 2. We are both 29 years old and are thinking long term, namely children. We would like to live near family; so it boils down to Ireland or the bay area. Honestly, as an irish person with LOTS of family (ahem 52 first cousins) family is a big deal. 3. Better work/life balance. In amer ...

Hi Kate If you can drive a standard stick-shift car you will definitely have far more choice when you go to buy. They are by far the most available. Having said that I bought an automatic last year, not necessarily because I WAs looking for one, but mostly because it WAs the right car/price. I think you will find that both cars and child car seats are generally smaller in Europe than in the US. We brought our US-bought car seats to Ireland, and people do tend to comment on how much bigger they are. Actually the car we bought WAs as a result of needing a l ...

Hi Liam and friends, I'm hoping to be able to stay in Ireland for at least a month, possibly 6 months or more. I own my own company and work from home so I can bring my job with me. I WAs wondering if anyone knows what kind of visa I should apply for if I'm going to bring my own job and won't be looking for employment in Ireland. I've read if I stay for less than 3 months, I don't need to apply for a visa, but in case I WAnt to stay longer once I'm there, I thought it would be good to get a visa for at least a year before I come over. Not sure how that all ...

... run www.ukrsa.com and as my business has already spread back to Ireland its probably just as easy to operate from Ireland as it is from the UK. I am originally from Dublin. Below are "considerations" I am working through and if anyone has any advice based on actual experience, then I would be very pleased to listen. Broadband - My business needs good Broadband connectivity. I know that there are plans to roll out fast Broadband across Ireland very soon but what is it like around Wexford? Is it different out in the more rural areas than in Wexford City? H ...

Hi Georgios, welcome to the IMC Yeah, you'll find Galway to be totally different than LA. That's probably an understatement really haha Dublin is fairly metropolitan, but still nowhere near like LA is. It is a big City though, and comes with all of the pros and cons that go along with that tag. Update us with details as you progress through the move. Liam

@fionaz and anyone else having difficulty with this. I played around with Daft.ie today searching for rentals that will allow pets. If you go to their 'advanced search' option, you can choose that as one of your criteria in the search. As an example a search in Dublin City, with no other options set, returned 65 results. Of course, other factors will limit your selection e.g. price, location etc, but at least it's a starting point.

You're referring to the 'help to buy' scheme, right @dorzak ? There are plenty of new housing developments around the country. There were popping up all over Cork City suburbs where I lived. And most would fall under the 400k cap. Try this view on myhome.ie Click on the map view button and then zoom in on an area to see what's new. The map view is misleading at first until you zoom in, because it only shows hits in Dublin and Cork.

... the UK are cut or absolute minimum so that's a complication on other counts. Your wife is a nurse as is mine but we moved over just in time for the recruitment freeze in the HSE so the 5 new operating suites @ Portiuncula Hospital that should have been a prime employment opportunity for a theatre nurse didn't pan out that WAy. Chris is currently working in a nursery and worked in a national school as an intern last year. There are nursing opportunities but seeking them out before you move might be wise? To work in Ireland you need a PPS number which is a ...

... just throw on a jumper and continues to WAlk their dogs or go for a run. Here in Ca they even the slightest mist people think the day is ruined Liam, how often do you go to America? My husband just pointed out that another reason it would be easier to move to Ireland is more vacation- so more time to visit family (as opposed to me having only 2 weeks a year here). I think childcare everywhere cost a lot, but it seems as if Ireland has more benefits (free daycare, better public school, gp under 6 years) which is something we have to consider since we do pla ...