The wife and I just returned from a vacation in Ireland... we stayed in Cong, County Mayo/Galway (depending on where you are standing in Cong) and visited the family home in Moycullen, Galway. (A stacked stone, whitewashed single room dwelling without electricity or running water.)

Now she is determined to buy a second home in Ireland... and if you knew my wife, this determination will undoubtedly become a reality. Fortunately, we are in a financial position to make it happen within 18 to 24 months. I am all for it as it means I don't have to spend the rest of my life in Connecticut.

I am certain that buying a second home in Ireland isn't a cakewalk. I estimate we need 30 to 50% down plus 10% for taxes and fees.

Anyone have any experience doing what we hope to do? Any advice will be welcome!

No running water = no inside toilet. Outhouse much?

No electrical I could live with. Peace n quiet with a solar battery system for lantern could suffice.

We're NOT buying the Old family home... gosh, no.

We plan on buying something in the 12 -15 year old range, 3 bedrooms and all the modern conveniences.

Good question that I have sometimes wondered about myself.

You must realize, though, that for every helpful answer, you’ll get a dozen of the, “Why would you want to live there‽” meaningless ones. Stick with it and perhaps we will both learn something.

quote:

Originally posted by sigfreund:
Good question that I have sometimes wondered about myself.

You must realize, though, that for every helpful answer, you’ll get a dozen of the, “Why would you want to live there‽” meaningless ones. Stick with it and perhaps we will both learn something.

why would you,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,


any hoo, wife and I discussed it when we went to the UK 11 yrs ago but never went beyond a discussion,,,



I know a guy that lived there as an expat for about 10 yrs, and did buy a home,

he is back stateside now (ex ex pat??) but it may be a week or 3 before I see him


I don't recall him having any issues building a home, (he ran a few hostels, free board, then built a house to live in for a few years)


may want to reach out to a local (to that area) realtor and ask??

You need to find out what the taxes are in Ireland, that alone may be a dealbreaker.

And if you hadn’t noticed, everything except maybe beer (of course) is VERY EXPENSIVE there. We were there in 2012 and noticed that everyday things often cost twice in Ireland vs the US.

If you had to do any renovation etc, that too could be a dealbreaker if the job was $10,000 in the US but could be $20,000 - $50,000 there.

The Irish island of Arranmore is actively recruiting Americans to move there:

https://www.cnn.com/travel/art...scli-intl/index.html

I have gotten know quite of number of Irish clerics who have lived here for many years. All of them seem to want to return to Ireland for their retirement. They have sponsored quite a number of Church trips for parishoners. They often speak fondly of the local pubs,family and customs. Good luck and let us know how it turns out for you.

quote:

Originally posted by RogueJSK:
The Irish island of Arranmore is actively recruiting Americans to move there:

https://www.cnn.com/travel/art...scli-intl/index.html

Two questions arise. Can I take my guns and what’s the cost....

I'v wondered about the same thing but in France, Italy or Greece.

What I would recommend is finding a similar house on Air BNB or the other rental site and renting it for a month or longer and doing a long term vacation there before actually buying. This month long experience will give you time to explore different areas and look at various housing options and gets your feet wet and allows you to understand the process and local laws with home ownership without stepping in with both feet.

quote:

There is NO black powder shooting.

Well, that's a relief as you don't want the Police to see where you're shooting.

I realize this is a gun forum, but are there any further comments about the topic starter’s question?
(He did not mention guns, much less ask about owning them there.)

Well the OP does live in CT so the Irish laws will be less restrictive.

Seriously though, good luck with it. My wife and I are considering doing the same thing with a house in the Scottish Highlands.

Investigate the Internal Revenue Service rules regarding FATCA and the import to you.

The question was about buying a second home in a foreign country. It even included mention of costs and financing. As is extremely common in questions raised on this forum, what it did not include was any mention whatsoever of guns. Perhaps the man who asked the question is stunningly ignorant of the fact that Ireland and the UK have different laws pertaining to guns despite his personal experience with travelling there, but that is extraordinarily unlikely. There is nevertheless nothing wrong with pointing out that fact, just as there’s nothing wrong with telling someone who lives in Tucson, Arizona, that it gets hot in Phoenix, or telling a resident of Iceland that it snows in Greenland. It merely clutters up the thread with superfluous information, but that is also common here.

But to explain the point of my comments, since it seems to have been impenetrably opaque to some, I am also interested in what would be involved in purchasing a second home in the UK or Ireland. I have no intention of doing so for reasons that include their oppressive laws pertaining to many different facets of life that we enjoy in a free country, and not only firearms, but I am still curious. So I’ll reiterate: Does anyone have any useful information to answer the original question?

Yeah, it's expensive and whatnot, but what about guns? Can I have my guns over there?

Personally, I wouldn't commit to anything until you know how Brexit shakes out.

The ROI will obviously still be part of the EU, but it is still inextricably linked to N. Ireland, which won't be part of the EU.

I can't imagine the economic ramifications not hitting Ireland, even though it's still part of the EU.

Perhaps they will benefit you if you're looking for property--or perhaps not.

On a whim, we researched doing the ex-pat thing all over the world about a decade ago.

While many places looked appealing on the surface (and are probably wonderful places to visit), they all lack firearm freedoms that we enjoy in America (among other things; to include limitations on freedom of speech and other laws).

There is so much to take into account with foreign investment / real estate, from the laws of making it happen, the financial differences (a lot more $$$ down), taxes, as well as the exchange rate.

Unless someone REALLY wants to live somewhere a large portion of the time (3-6 months a year?), I would venture simply renting a location for 1 week - 2 months a year would be the safer method.

Or at the very least I would start with some extended stays of 1-2 months to ensure (1) you still want to live there part time and (2) you learn the specific areas you would like to live in as well as the areas you DON'T want to live in.

I have a friend who bought an apartment in France while doing a 2 year exchange with their Armed Forces. After being home for a couple of years, he referred to it as the "financial boil on his ass", even considering he had married a French woman in the area. I think he eventually sold it for some loss just to stem the bleeding of money.

I appreciate all the pros and cons everyone is bringing up (that's why I asked the all-knowing, all-seeing Forum!).

I do realize that Ireland is a disarmed society, at least as far as handguns go. My Sigs, Walthers, etc. would have to stay in the States. Except those that I lost in a tragic canoe accident.... those are gone forever!

Does anyone know the specifics of owning shotguns in Ireland? (Googling doesn't give me much of an answer.) They hunt woodcock and grouse there, so am I making a bad assumption that I can eventually own a 12 or 28 gauge?

As far as buying a home, we're not looking at it as an investment. The wife REALLY wants to spend time in Ireland and I REALLY don't want to die in Connecticut... so our motivation is to satisfy emotional needs. (Plus there is golf... there are fantastic golf courses within 2 hours' drive of where we're looking... and Edinburgh is a 95 minute plane ride away.)

Yes, we plan to spend weeks at a time in various locations across Counties Mayo, Galway and maybe Roscommon. We're giving ourselves 18-24 months to really hone in a house.