I arrived back in Ireland a few weeks ago. As I write this from my home in Cork, the country is basking in glorious sunshine. Maybe I brought the weather with me…
One of the great benefits of being an international real estate scout is that it gives me the chance to base myself wherever I want in the world.
I spend time every winter at my condo in Cabo, Mexico. When spring rolls around in the Northern Hemisphere, I fly across the Atlantic Ocean to spend time in Portugal, and in my native Ireland.
I spend time in Cabo every winter. I own six properties here. But when the weather warms up, it’s time for me to move on. A decade ago I vowed to never be in a place where I need heating or air con.
I want bright sunshine…and to be in beautiful places close to international airports.
I organize my life around bases primarily in Cabo, Ireland and Portugal.
In Cabo, you have the deep-blue ocean…long, pristine golden-sand beaches…a dramatic, rugged coastline… And then set back from it all are rolling desert landscapes, with towering cactuses and endemic elephant trees.
Few settings are more instantly captivating.
Although I’m always sad to leave Cabo, when it gets warm enough for aircon, it’s time for me to move on.
As I say, now I’m home in Ireland, enjoying my homeland as spring segues into summer…May to September are the best months to experience all that Ireland has to offer.
After spending a significant amount of time overseas, I’m seeing Ireland afresh through the eyes of a tourist.
The evenings are long and bright. I love being able to tee off at 7 p.m. for nine holes of golf with friends and neighbors. Soon…as the evenings get even longer and there will still be light past 10.30 p.m.
Sometimes, people get the wrong idea. When they hear that I’ve internationalized my life, they think I’ve turned my back on Ireland.
That’s not the case at all.
I just don’t want to be in Ireland during the months when it’s dreary here…with short days that can be cold, wet, and overcast.
It’s just not for me. Plus there’s so much of the world I want to explore.
Internationalizing my life has given me a new appreciation of Ireland.
Last weekend I visited the Saltee Islands off the coast of Wexford for the first time. The islands lie on a migratory route, and puffins are just one of the species that can be seen here during the spring and autumn bird migrations.
After spending time overseas, I look at my native country in a totally different way. Like a tourist would. Now I appreciate how beautiful it is and how friendly and welcoming the people are…
And I’ve discovered an insatiable appetite to explore my homeland the way a first-time visitor would.
It’s a pleasure to explore Ireland with my wife, Sayuri, experiencing it with the enthusiasm of a tourist.
I’ve only been home two weeks and my wife Sayuri and I have already visited the puffins on the Saltee Islands…driven to Slea Head in the Dingle Peninsula …last weekend, I drove to Baltimore and took the ferry to Sherkin Island, where we walked across the island to the white-sand beach on the far side…
And each night I’ve gone home to sleep in my own bed.
Bliss.
Slea Head on the Dingle Peninsula offers breathtaking scenery. Even the drive here is spectacular.
I’m excited about what my Irish summer holds.
But Ireland for us isn’t all about golf, scenic drives and visiting the puffins…
As I explore my homeland, I’ve also been taking stock of the changing property landscape…
Ireland has a hugely dysfunctional real estate market at present. Put simply, there’s a chronic shortage of homes. And at the same time it’s very complicated to sell a home. The process is arcane and there’s so much new bureaucracy that even though you will find a buyer in a couple of days actually closing the transaction is a total nightmare.
I predicted this shortage 15 years ago when Ireland was still struggling in the aftermath of the global financial crisis and almost no one wanted to buy here. I could see then that a collapse in construction activity combined with demographic trends would lead to a big housing shortfall in the decades ahead. RETA members who followed my recommendations did phenomenally well.
Insider’s Travel tip: Take the 10-minute ferry from Baltimore to Sherkin Island. Walk straight across the island following the road. There are very few cars…we only saw one in our entire time there. And follow the curve of bay to one of the most spectacular hidden beaches I’ve seen. I felt like I was in a movie as the empty beach revealed itself.
Despite there never being a stronger rental market I’m selling my entire rental portfolio in Ireland. I can do a lot better buying in our members only deal where we enjoy strong capital appreciation during construction and then higher rental yields with much lower costs.
But I am on the lookout for a vacation home here. A place that will be primarily a lifestyle investment but that I also expect will perform solidly over time.
“The country is awash with money…” is something I keep hearing. So we have to go a little bit of the beaten path to find some value. Plus we need to find an angle.
An area that I’ve grown to like in recent years is the Caherciveen and Valentia Island area of County Kerry. It’s on the Ring of Kerry and The Wild Atlantic way…it’s wildly beautiful…but is in the earlier stages of getting “fancy” than other parts.
I’m spending a week there with extended family later this summer. And staying in this Airbnb:
The Airbnb where I’ll be spending a week in Caherciveen, in the far south-west of Ireland. As of the last count, Caherciveen had a population of 1,297 people.
The play here is to buy either an ugly bungalow or a dilapidated farmhouse and renovate. Buy something old and unloved…but has drop dead gorgeous views.
Stay tuned, I’ll keep you posted as my search continues…and will be sharing lots of photos on my Instagram.
Wishing you good real estate investing,
Ronan McMahon
Founder, Overseas Dream Home & Real Estate Trend Alert
P.S. Next weekend I’m heading to Caminha in Northern Portugal to check in on progress with my renovation project there. Stay tuned for my full reports.
