Hi,
I’ve started looking into mortgages and I just find the whole thing a bit confusing.
Has anyone got experience with talking to some sort of advisor to get a good indication of what they need to do so I get myself into a decent position when a potential property comes along? Thanks!
Hi, I’m a 21 year old who will shortly be starting a Dublin job on a €41k/year salary (net 2.7k/month?)
At my salary I’ve seen many people on here repeatedly say they’re paying 900-1000/month on rent. However, (in my opinion) this is often as a result of a significant sacrifice in the quality of living, e.g., living very far out, sharing with a family/>4 people, renting only a room etc.
This of course results in quite a high amount of savings with 2.7k/month. However, I believe at my age it might be better to look for better living conditions/locations, and be willing to sacrifice more savings to rent as a result.
If I shift my rental budget to a ceiling of 1500/month:
With ~200/month on bills/utilities, ~50/month on transport with young leap card, 400/month on food and 300/month on recreational spending, that still leaves 250/month for savings.
While this is lower than others are saving on my salary, considering my younger age and the fact that my wage is guaranteed to rise to 44k after 1 year at 56k after 4 years (provided I don’t get sacked), would it not be better to find a better place to live in that also minimises commuting times/costs?
Hi all
My child is going to college in the UK. I have no idea where to start with making arrangements for paying his tuition fees and expenses when he is there in respect of bank fees/ exchanger rates etc. It’s a specialised course and we have agreed to pay his fees and accommodation expenses. So there will be annually a fairly hefty college tuition fee and then monthly accommodation costs all in sterling. I am addled with deciding how to manage this in terms of exchange rates, bank fees etc. I have an AIB account and a standard revolut account. Any thoughts on the best way to set all these payments up? Obviously the sterling conversion is going to be a factor plus transaction fees. I’m new to an arrangement like this and want to keep it as simple as possible. Any advice?
Ps - he’s a great kid who has always paid his way etc
Hi, I’m a 21 year old who will shortly be starting a Dublin job on a €41k/year salary (net 2.7k/month?)
At my salary I’ve seen many people on here repeatedly say they’re paying 900-1000/month on rent. However, (in my opinion) this is often as a result of a significant sacrifice in the quality of living, e.g., living very far out, sharing with a family/>4 people, renting only a room etc.
This of course results in quite a high amount of savings with 2.7k/month. However, I believe at my age it might be better to look for better living conditions/locations, and be willing to sacrifice more savings to rent as a result.
If I shift my rental budget to a ceiling of 1500/month:
With ~200/month on bills/utilities, ~50/month on transport with young leap card, 400/month on food and 300/month on recreational spending, that still leaves 250/month for savings.
While this is lower than others are saving on my salary, considering my younger age and the fact that my wage is guaranteed to rise to 44k after 1 year at 56k after 4 years (provided I don’t get sacked), would it not be better to find a better place to live in that also minimises commuting times/costs?
"Maybe you could afford a home if you stopped buying all those coffees out!!!"
Like everyone else, I always laugh when the older generation say things like this to us. However...
Because I'm dull I decided to do a quick calculation on how much making coffee at home has actually saved me.
I bought a good machine / grinder in 2022 and I've had ~90% of my coffees at home since then (2 cups a day on weekdays, 1 cup / day at weekend)
Please don't take this too seriously, some of us will look at this and say its worth drinking out. Others will look at it and say that's a good saving to have.
For simplicity, I only did Americanos. I drink these mostly but I think more savings would exist because of how much extra cafes charge for milk compared to the cost of it to buy yourself. I also used current-day prices for everything and not the cheaper 2022-2025 prices which would make this higher still!
Personally I really like making coffee, so I don't care either way. But €6.5k-8k is a good chunk!
Enough to buy a house? No. Enjoy your coffees out.
Not sure if this is the best place to post this.... But I have 2 keyfobs for SuperValu. I always get €5 off €35, for as long as I can remember on both accounts. I have 2 as I might do 2 weekly shops. But now, both accounts are showing that I'll only be getting €5 off €45 for the next few weeks. Is this the same for everyone else? I'm sickened as money is tight.
Are there any credit cards available in Ireland that have rental car insurance as a benefit?
When living in the US I had a Chase card with this benefit and it was very useful, especially renting here in Ireland where they require some kind of insurance when you rent. Never had a major accident but car companies love charging for every tiny scratch or bump, so it’s nice to get the money back.
Haven’t found anything by search, but is anyone aware of any cars available here with that benefit?
I’ve been looking into the financial advisory space lately and trying to understand how people actually navigate it. It seems like a lot of people either love their planner or have horror stories.
I'd love to hear about your actual experiences. Personally they are selling me just some funds/products.
Specifically:
- If you hired an advisor, how did you actually go about finding them?
- Was there a specific "tipping point" in your life that made you finally say, "Okay, I need to hire someone?"
- If you ended up stopping the relationship, what was the reason?
And for those who manage their own money, what made you walk away from the idea of getting professional help?
Hoping to hear some real-world stories rather than just the standard advice.
Thanks!
Revolut points transferred to avios have the additional 20% bonus back now until the end of the month
I’m a man in my mid 30’s so I left college in the recession so no money, parents had no real wealth, my first 10 years of working were salaries of 20 to 30k (good for the time) and although I have never been flush I would say I have always been comfortable. I have a wife and one child, both of us have normal jobs and she has been stay at home mum for the past two years. We are comfortable and had a good bit saved for buying our house. I really can’t understand the cost of living “crisis” rhetoric, in a recent discussion with friends I was shocked to hear the salary they were on, big money two of them are in construction, two teachers on over 70k and a guard on over 85k when he included his over time and event work.
How are these people tight on money or is it just a case of the Irish thing of crowd complaining
Also the holidays that people go on, the fashion, the concerts, the races the cars …the average person is living a hell of a lifestyle for a cost of living crisis
And before you say “it’s only a few that have money that’s not the average” have a look at the cars at the school gate you wouldn’t see solicitors driving cars like it 10 years ago
Pre-settlement funding in Ireland?
Has anyone in Ireland actually gone through the process of getting an advance/loan against an ongoing lawsuit or potential settlement?
I’m wondering if it’s possible to access cash before the case is resolved. My solicitor is willing to provide a letter regarding the case.
Would be interested to hear from anyone who’s actually done this, how the process worked, what was required, and whether it was difficult to get approved.
We went sale agreed on a house around 4 August for €366k. It was advertised as BER C3, but we’ve now discovered that a new BER issued on 16 August rates it G. The estate agent is investigating, but we’re obviously very concerned given the potential cost of upgrading it.
Has anyone been in a similar situation where the BER changed significantly after going sale agreed? What did you do, and did you renegotiate the price? Any advice would be appreciated!
I have made a mess. I took out a 10k loan and planned to buy a new car but then time passed and I ended up just spending it, with just 3k left. Meant to be going for a mortgage soon and they'll see I just sent the loan on nothing. Worried now. I am trying to get a new job with higher pay and want to pay the loan off sooner but I have messed my accounts up now. Any advice on this and just becoming less awful with my spending in general? I can't get a hold on it.
Hey,
I’ve been in full employment in Ireland until end of July when I moved abroad for work. I won’t be resident in Ireland for either this year or next year. My employment was ceased on Revenue on the 31st July and I submitted a tax refund request on the following day. Have yet to receive any correspondence but from reading online most information seems to be that your refund is processed within 5-10 days (but can be longer at busier times of the year).
Just wondering if anyone else has experience of the process and if/when it’s worth phoning for an update or if that will achieve anything?
Hi all - I’m lucky enough to be sale agreed on a house for a month now. The sales advice notice was issued 2 weeks ago. The sellers solicitors have not sent over the initial document pack yet that includes the title deeds etc. Our solicitors have sent a chaser but there has been no response or even an acknowledgement of the delay. I’ve read online that it may be due to the bank delaying the issue of the deeds. I just wanted to know if this is a normal timeline. Thanks
Edit: First time buyers. No chain on either side.
May be the wrong forum so please delete if it is and apologies.
Second viewing on a place we love tomorrow. Currently highest bidder, agent was in touch saying they had an offer higher but was dependant on sale of a house so they wanted to come back to us. They’d previously had a highest bid similar situation and it fell through.
We’re going for a second viewing tomorrow and would love to close on it. I feel like he’s wager to get a deal done but also trying to put the squeeze on to get another jump out of us. Any advice? FTBs, and first time this far in the process.
Edit: other “offer” is 10k higher. Bidding is through email but I haven’t actually received notice of it as an official bid, only mentioned over the phone.
I am a 24 years old male and just graduated from college last year, got a job straight forward after graduation and earning 65k base salary before tax.
I am lucky that my parents prepared a house in Dublin for me then I don’t need to save money for the house. I am thinking what to do next? I don’t know how can I invest my salary every month and if it is deserved for me to study abroad for another master in USA or do a PhD there. I am still young and trying to have other experiences.
Lads I genuinely have a fear of spending money, whenever it comes down to buying things, there's an intense guilt that I feel after the purchase. I often analyse things I bought and think I wish I didnt buy that and how it could be got for less had I waited.
I dont invest or bother with savings accounts, I use my current account which I know is not smart and how i am losing money to inflation.
Over the past year or so I went down a rabbit hole of consuming financial content online, personal finance subs like this, Dave Ramsey content on youtube, and while it taught me alot it also made the voice in my head louder, so whenever it comes to buying things theres always this idea of is this a waste of money, should I opt for something cheaper or completely avoid spending at all.
When it comes to investing, I have a fear of failure and get overwhelmed by all the different options, what if VWCE isnt the best option, what if the SP500 crashes, what if the savings account I pick isnt the best rate. These are some of the thoughts that deter me from investing so I end up just hoarding money instead.
For those who have been through this, what actually got you to pull the trigger on your first investment or savings account, despite not knowing for certain it was the optimal choice and what were some of the things you did you calm financial anxiety?
In need of some advice, hope this is the right place for it. I am bidding on a house at the moment with my husband and we’ve saved for years and we’re finally approved for a mortgage after a few years of trying to get there but failing due to ill health, job losses etc. We found a house that we love and we were bidding for 3 weeks now and I’ve been the highest bidder since last week, there’s been no other bids. There was one other bidder but I assume they’ve dropped out now as they never came back to us. They were bidding 1k each time so we went up 4k in the last bidding round and they didn’t come back since. The house is priced 30k and 50k above other similar properties in that area and the estate agent has a history of selling houses close to the asking price. We are currently 15k over the asking price and there’s been no other bidders that have come along and I haven’t received any updates on my offer. Everything is by email. We are chain free, I advised them I have my solicitor ready to go and there won’t be any delay etc. It’s been on the market for 5 weeks. I’m just struggling as to whether I should contact the estate agent or not and ask where we are at or do I just leave it alone but then I wonder how long will they keep us waiting.. I honestly don’t know how people do this, I’m finding the whole process incredibly stressful, constantly second guessing. Thank you in advance.
