Broadcaster is forced to commute from Glasgow due to ‘extortionate’ rent costs
A TODAY FM presenter is being forced to commute from Glasgow to Dublin every week for work due to extortionate rental costs.
Broadcaster Kelly-Anne Byrne says it makes more financial sense to fly between Scotland and Ireland than to live and rent in Dublin.
Ms Byrne decided to start looking for accommodation abroad when the lease on her Dublin flat was unexpectedly terminated.
Having lived in the flat for four years, Ms Byrne had four months to vacate the premises.
“It came out of nowhere,” she said.
The broadcaster, who presents ‘The Beat Goes On’ every Saturday and Sunday, searched for a new home for three months but could find no affordable options.
“Prices were extortionate and a lot of the places were just awful. It was souldestroying,” she said.
She searched for properties outside Dublin but options in Cork and Galway were also limited.
According to a Daft.ie report, the average monthly rent in Dublin at the end of May was €1,923, and in Cork and Galway, average monthly rents were €1,210 and €1,131 respectively.
Ms Byrne decided to move to Scotland and now lives in a two-bedroom apartment in the West End of Glasgow for the equivalent of €770 per month.
Return flights to Dublin work out at €30 each week (€120 per month), providing she books them in advance.
“I didn’t want to leave Dublin but in all my years renting I’ve never seen the housing situation as bad as it is now. Leaving wasn’t easy but I had to do it,” she said.
The rental market can make individuals feel like a failure, she added.