Live and Invest Overseas
The Best Places To Retire In 2025 Report
FREE REPORT: THE BEST PLACES TO RETIRE IN 2025
We Value Your Privacy! We will not share your email address with anyone else, period.
  • Home
  • Countries

    Top Destinations:

    Whether you’re looking for fun and sun, a peaceful retirement, or the chance to earn some extra income, you’ve got a real world of opportunity open to you… In short, we’ve done our best to narrow down your best options, but only you can decide the right country for you.

    • Spain
    • Portugal
    • Panama
    • Belize
    • Colombia
    • Cyprus
    • Mexico
    • France
    • Montenegro
    • Browse All Countries

    Best For:

    • The Best Places To Retire
    • Health Care Abroad
    • Cost Of Living
    • Investing in Real Estate
    • Establishing Residency
    • Gun Laws In The World
    • English-Speaking Countries
    • Safest Places For Retirement
    • Best Places In Latin America
  • Budgets

    How Much Will It Cost You To Live Overseas?

    The only honest answer is, we have no idea. And neither does anyone else. The only one who can answer that question is you. Here’s the most important thing to understand about budgeting your new life overseas…

    Super Cheap

    • Chitré, Panama
    • Santa Marta, Colombia
    • Phuket, Thailand
    • Dumaguete, The Philippines

    Cheap

    • Medellin, Colombia
    • Boquete, Panama
    • Kyrenia, Cyprus
    • Hua Hin, Thailand
    • The Algarve, Portugal

    Affordable

    • Valencia, Spain
    • Cascais, Portugal
    • Las Terrenas, The DR
    • Pisa, Italy
    • La Rochelle, France
    • Mazatlán, Mexico

    Luxury

    • Ambergris Caye, Belize
    • Kotor, Montenegro
    • The Panama City Beaches
    • Paris, France
  • Resources

    Global Living

    • Living & Retiring Overseas
    • Raising A Family Abroad
    • Foreign Residency & Citizenship
    • Offshore & Diversification

    Making Money

    • International Real Estate
    • Banking
    • Employment
    • Investing

    Follow Us:

    • Meet Our Experts
  • Real Estate

    Buying Real Estate For Cashflow

    • Discover tips and strategies used by global property investing veterans

    Explore Our Latest Posts

    • Learn how to invest and purchase property abroad…

    Go To The Overseas Property Alert Site

    • How To Become Independently Wealthy And Fund The Lifestyle Of Your Dreams
  • Conferences

    Upcoming Events

    • Explore Our Events Site

    Live and Invest In Spain Conference

    Offshore Wealth Summit

    Argentina Workshop

    VALENCIA, SPAIN

    Sep. 17-19, 2025

    PANAMA CITY, PANAMA

    Oct. 15-17, 2025

    VIRTUAL

    Nov. 13, 2025

    Learn More About This Event
    Learn More About This Event
    PRE-REGISTER
    Learn More About This Event
    PRE-REGISTER
    • MORE EVENTS

    Contact Our Events Team

    Toll-Free U.S. and Canada:
    1 (888) 627 8834
    From Outside North America:
    1 (443) 599 1221
    Working Hours
    Monday – Friday 08:00 am – 17:00 pm EST.

    Reach us with your questions by email at: events@liveandinvestoverseas.com

  • Store

    Unlock The World

    • Access Your Library

    Overseas Havens Reports

    • Expats' comprehensive destination guides

    Conference Kits

    • Hours of coverage  from our latests conferences

    Lahardan Books

    • Titles on living and investing around the world
    • Explore Our Store
    Your passport to a life well-lived abroad

    Services

    overseas living letter offers affordable retirement guidance
    The Simon Letter Wealth Protection Insights
    Global Property Advisor Global Investment Opportunities

    Our Customer Service team is here to assist with any questions or concerns CustomerService@LiveandInvestOverseas.com

  • My Library
Live and Invest Overseas
  • Home
  • Countries

    Top Destinations:

    Whether you’re looking for fun and sun, a peaceful retirement, or the chance to earn some extra income, you’ve got a real world of opportunity open to you… In short, we’ve done our best to narrow down your best options, but only you can decide the right country for you.

    • Spain
    • Portugal
    • Panama
    • Belize
    • Colombia
    • Cyprus
    • Mexico
    • France
    • Montenegro
    • Browse All Countries

    Best For:

    • The Best Places To Retire
    • Health Care Abroad
    • Cost Of Living
    • Investing in Real Estate
    • Establishing Residency
    • Gun Laws In The World
    • English-Speaking Countries
    • Safest Places For Retirement
    • Best Places In Latin America
  • Budgets

    How Much Will It Cost You To Live Overseas?

    The only honest answer is, we have no idea. And neither does anyone else. The only one who can answer that question is you. Here’s the most important thing to understand about budgeting your new life overseas…

    Super Cheap

    • Chitré, Panama
    • Santa Marta, Colombia
    • Phuket, Thailand
    • Dumaguete, The Philippines

    Cheap

    • Medellin, Colombia
    • Boquete, Panama
    • Kyrenia, Cyprus
    • Hua Hin, Thailand
    • The Algarve, Portugal

    Affordable

    • Valencia, Spain
    • Cascais, Portugal
    • Las Terrenas, The DR
    • Pisa, Italy
    • La Rochelle, France
    • Mazatlán, Mexico

    Luxury

    • Ambergris Caye, Belize
    • Kotor, Montenegro
    • The Panama City Beaches
    • Paris, France
  • Resources

    Global Living

    • Living & Retiring Overseas
    • Raising A Family Abroad
    • Foreign Residency & Citizenship
    • Offshore & Diversification

    Making Money

    • International Real Estate
    • Banking
    • Employment
    • Investing

    Follow Us:

    • Meet Our Experts
  • Real Estate

    Buying Real Estate For Cashflow

    • Discover tips and strategies used by global property investing veterans

    Explore Our Latest Posts

    • Learn how to invest and purchase property abroad…

    Go To The Overseas Property Alert Site

    • How To Become Independently Wealthy And Fund The Lifestyle Of Your Dreams
  • Conferences

    Upcoming Events

    • Explore Our Events Site

    Live and Invest In Spain Conference

    Offshore Wealth Summit

    Argentina Workshop

    VALENCIA, SPAIN

    Sep. 17-19, 2025

    PANAMA CITY, PANAMA

    Oct. 15-17, 2025

    VIRTUAL

    Nov. 13, 2025

    Learn More About This Event
    Learn More About This Event
    PRE-REGISTER
    Learn More About This Event
    PRE-REGISTER
    • MORE EVENTS

    Contact Our Events Team

    Toll-Free U.S. and Canada:
    1 (888) 627 8834
    From Outside North America:
    1 (443) 599 1221
    Working Hours
    Monday – Friday 08:00 am – 17:00 pm EST.

    Reach us with your questions by email at: events@liveandinvestoverseas.com

  • Store

    Unlock The World

    • Access Your Library

    Overseas Havens Reports

    • Expats' comprehensive destination guides

    Conference Kits

    • Hours of coverage  from our latests conferences

    Lahardan Books

    • Titles on living and investing around the world
    • Explore Our Store
    Your passport to a life well-lived abroad

    Services

    overseas living letter offers affordable retirement guidance
    The Simon Letter Wealth Protection Insights
    Global Property Advisor Global Investment Opportunities

    Our Customer Service team is here to assist with any questions or concerns CustomerService@LiveandInvestOverseas.com

  • My Library
Live and Invest Overseas
 Moving Out Of The U.S?

THE 10 BEST PLACES TO RETIRE IN 2025

the 10 best places to retire in 2025

PLUS: A SPECIAL BONUS DESTINATION

Simply sign up to receive the FREE daily e-letter, Overseas Opportunity Letter, and we’ll immediately email you our editors’ latest research report… absolutely FREE

We Value Your Privacy! We will not share your email address with anyone else, period.

Home Countries Ireland

Revealing The Best Place To Live In Ireland

It’s Official—Waterford Is The Best Place To Live In Ireland

by Lynn Mulvihill
Oct 07, 2021
in Ireland, Retirement/Living
0 0
Cityscape during the day in Waterford, Ireland

Adobe Stock/Madrugada Verde

Over the summer, 470 places across the island competed for the title of “Best Place To Live In Ireland.”

The winner, announced by The Irish Times this week, is…

Drumroll, please…

My hometown of Waterford City… on the country’s southeast coast.
Reginald, Ireland

Founded by the Vikings in 914, Waterford is Ireland’s oldest city. Later falling to Norman hands, it has a long, rich history. After a rough economic patch in the 2000s—between the fall of the Celtic Tiger and the closure of the town’s crystal factory—Waterford has been quietly reinventing itself. Much of this renewal has come from tapping into its colorful past…

Today, Waterford’s Viking Triangle is one of the top draws—it’s a 7-acre area of the center that showcases some of the city’s finest architecture (new and old), and includes museums, monuments, craft shops, cafés, and the impressive, 23-meter-long wood carving known as the “Viking Dragon Slayer Sword.” During festivals, it’s not uncommon to see a few Vikings walking the streets or engaging in battle (reenactment only, of course).

Wooden viking sword
The Viking Dragon Slayer Sword depicts the story of the Vikings’ arrival in Ireland

The smallest of Ireland’s cities, with a population of 53,500, Waterford feels more like a small town. You also have the benefit of reaching the countryside within minutes. The closest beaches are about a 15-minute drive from the center… and the mountains are less than half an hour away. A few minutes from the city center, you can join the “greenway”—a former railway line redeveloped for walking and biking. The Waterford Greenway runs for 30 miles to the coastal town of Dungarvan—with stunning views of coast and countryside along the way… and optional café stops.

What’s missing in the city? If you’re a shopper, you won’t find big malls or outlets around Waterford. I see this as a plus—it means a strong (and growing) supply of small, independent traders. For bigger retail kicks, there’s Kilkenny (30 minutes away), and it’s just two hours along the motorway to Dublin.

The vintage factory in Ireland
Cafés and boutiques housed in old buildings
add to the city’s charm

Other advantages cited by the competition judges are Waterford’s affordability, its pedestrianized areas, culture (there’s a strong arts scene here and a busy festival schedule), a residential presence within the city (unlike Dublin’s largely commercialized center), strong potential (with many plans in place for future renewal), job growth (it’s a pharmaceutical and technology hub), and its welcoming nature.

Of course, this whole process of finding Ireland’s best place to live wasn’t written with the expat in mind. While Waterford City holds just as much appeal for the “outsider,” particularly those after a more laid-back way of life in a small town, you have an extra hurdle…

Unless you have Irish citizenship or can acquire it through ancestry, it’s not easy to retire to Ireland. You’re required to show a minimum annual income of 50,000 euros (that’s 100,000 euros per couple) for every year you plan to stay in the country. But, for the right person, it could make a good part-time home. Now that word is spreading about Waterford, it may be the time to act on a southeast property…

The Post-Lockdown Property Market

Latest reports show that, nationally, Irish asking prices rose by 9% over the last year. With pandemic buyers concentrating on areas away from the big city, Dublin’s prices saw just a 4.9% increase in asking prices, with the average city property asking 399,323 euros.

Meanwhile in Waterford, the growth figure is just 2.7% with an average price of 270,071 euros. Again, these figures are based on asking prices. Thanks to two lockdowns of the construction industry over the last year, there’s still a lack of housing stock to meet the pent-up demand, so transaction values are often higher. Right now, cash buyers have a distinct advantage in the bidding wars.

If you’re interested in living in the city proper, the most attractive properties are Georgian and Victorian homes. The best of these are upward of 500,000 euros. You’ll find cheaper period properties, but they usually require serious renovation. More modern offerings in the city center start from around 150,000 euros.

If you’d prefer more space from your neighbors, you’ll find many attractive options within a 10-mile radius of the city. Cottages with acreage start around 200,000 euros, but 250,000 to 350,000 is more common… with prices rising the closer you get to the coast (especially those near the beach towns of Tramore and Dunmore East).

Here are some of the best samples I dug up on the market right now…

In the city…

  • Just a few minutes’ walk to the city center, there’s a terraced townhouse that’s been recently renovated to a high standard. It’s 100 square meters with three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a living room, and an open-plan kitchen/dining room. Rear garden is fully paved and has a concrete shed. Price: 200,000 euros (US$234,000).
  • Three-bed townhouse facing onto John’s River. This is a three-story property, 121 square meters, recently renovated, with lots of natural light. Price: 189,000 euros (US$221,120).
  • Georgian property of 200 square meters, blending old features with some modern extensions. With a large, south-facing rear garden, the property itself has a kitchen, two reception rooms, an office, three bathrooms, and four bedrooms (master includes a dressing room). Price: 585,000 euros (US$684,400).

For a rural escape, but close to the city, these are the ones I see as representing good value…

  • Twenty minutes from the city, near the village of Kill, there’s a timber log house on 0.6 acres. Covering 230 square meters, it has four bedrooms, two bathrooms, an open-plan living/dining area, a kitchen, an office, and a sunroom/gym. Price: 349,000 euros (US$408,300).
  • Also a 20-minute drive from Waterford, this modern cottage is near the village of Kilmeadan. Sitting on an acre, with views of the surrounding countryside, the 180-square-meter home has a kitchen, a living/dining room, an office, four bedrooms, two bathrooms, and three sheds. Price: 349,000 (US$408,300).
  • A home just a mile from the beach and the charming fishing village of Dunmore East. On a 0.75-acre site, it has a kitchen/dining room, living room, sunroom, bathroom, and three bedrooms. Price: 350,000 euros (US$409,480).

Bottom line, it’s a seller’s market in Waterford, and across Ireland, right now. But I’m keeping close watch on the property stock and will keep you posted should anything else interesting crop up. Meanwhile, if you have any questions on the Irish property market, you can reach me here.

Lynn Mulvihill
Editor, Overseas Property Alert

Tags: 'Ireland''Retire To Ireland''Waterford'best places to live in irelandlive in Irelandlive in waterfordMove to Irelandwaterford city
Share84Tweet52
Lynn Mulvihill

Lynn Mulvihill

A native of Waterford, Ireland, Lynn Mulvihill has written on the topic of retiring overseas for nearly a decade, editing a variety of e-letters, newsletters, reports, and books. Lynn took a sabbatical in 2007 for the birth of her son…and, liking her new career, decided to stay home. Now moonlighting as a freelance writer and editor, Lynn continues to contribute to Live and Invest Overseas covering the beat of living and investing overseas. Though firmly rooted to her native soil, Lynn enjoys traveling…and has spent time in Europe, Asia, the U.S., and Central America.

Start Your New Life Overseas Today!
Sign up for our free daily e-letter, Overseas Opportunity Letter, and we'll send you a FREE report on The 10 Best Places To Retire In 2025.

We Value Your Privacy! We will not share your email address with anyone else, period.
Our Expertise Unlocks The World

quick links

  • Best Places To Live
  • Best Places To Retire
  • Finding A Job Overseas
  • Real Estate

LIOS Resources

  • New To LIOS
  • Ask An Expert
  • Media Center
  • Contact Us
  • FAQs
the 10 best places to retire in 2025
Sign up for our free daily e-letter, Overseas Opportunity Letter, and get your FREE REPORT: The 10 Best Places To Retire Overseas In 2025

We Value Your Privacy! We will not share your email address with anyone else, period.

As seen in

US Media Logos

© 2008 – Live and Invest Overseas™ – All Rights Reserved.

About Us / Contact Us / Privacy Policy / Terms / Unsubscribe
Facebook-f X-twitter Youtube Linkedin-in Instagram

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?
Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
HOME

Top Countries

  • Spain
  • Portugal
  • Panama
  • Belize
  • Colombia
  • Cyprus
  • Mexico
  • France
  • Montenegro

Best For:

  • Health Care Abroad
  • Retirement Living
  • Cost Of Living
  • Investing in Real Estate
  • Establishing Residency
  • Gun Ownership
  • English Speakers
  • Safety
BROWSE ALL COUNTRIES

Budgets

How Much Will It Cost
To Live Overseas?

Super Cheap

  • Chitré, Panama
  • Santa Marta, Colombia
  • Phuket, Thailand
  • Dumaguete, The Philippines

Cheap

  • Medellin, Colombia
  • Boquete, Panama
  • Kyrenia, Cyprus
  • Hua Hin, Thailand
  • The Algarve, Portugal

Affordable

  • Valencia, Spain
  • Cascais, Portugal
  • Las Terrenas, The DR
  • Pisa, Italy
  • La Rochelle, France
  • Mazatlán, Mexico

Luxury

  • Ambergris Caye, Belize
  • Kotor, Montenegro
  • The Panama City Beaches
  • Paris, France

Resources

Global Living

  • Living & Retiring Overseas
  • Raising A Family Abroad
  • Foreign Residency & Citizenship
  • Offshore & Diversification

Making Money

  • International Real Estate
  • Banking
  • Employment
  • Investing
Meet Our Experts

Real Estate

Overseas Property Alert 

 

How To Become Independently Wealthy And Fund The Lifestyle Of Your Dreams

VISIT SITE

Buying Real Estate For Cashflow

 

Discover tips and strategies used by global property investing veterans

READ MORE

Explore Our Latest Posts

 

Learn how to invest and purchase property abroad…

EXPLORE

Conferences

Live and Invest In Spain Conference

VALENCIA, SPAIN Sep. 17-19, 2025
Learn More About This Event

Offshore Wealth Summit

PANAMA CITY, PANAMA Oct. 15-17, 2025
Learn More About This Event
PRE-REGISTER

Argentina Workshop

VIRTUAL Nov. 13, 2025
Learn More About This Event
PRE-REGISTER
MORE EVENTS

Contact Our Events Team:

Toll-Free U.S. and Canada:
1 (888) 627 8834

From Outside North America:
1 (443) 599 1221

Working Hours
Monday – Friday 08:00 am – 17:00 pm EST.

Reach us with your questions by email at: events@liveandinvestoverseas.com

Store

Overseas Havens Reports

  • Expats' comprehensive destination guides

Conference Kits

  • Hours of coverage  from our latests conferences

Lahardan Books

  • Titles on living and investing around the world

Services

  • Overseas Living Letter: Affordable Retirement Guidance
  • The Simon Letter: Wealth Protection Insights
  • Global Property Advisor: Global Investment Opportunitites
VISIT OUR STORE

Free Report

THE 10 BEST PLACES TO RETIRE IN 2025

FREE REPORT: The 10 Best Places To retire in 2025

Sign up to receive the FREE daily e-letter, Overseas Opportunity Letter and we’ll immediately email you our editors’ latest research report…

We Value Your Privacy! We will not share your email address with anyone else, period.

LIBRARY

Follow Us:

© 2008 - Live and Invest Overseas - All Rights Reserved.

RETIRE OVERSEAS AND LIVE LIKE ROYALTY

Sign up for FREE to learn how. Plus, check out our FREE report on THE 10 BEST PLACES TO RETIRE


We Value Your Privacy! We will not share your email address with anyone else, period.

RETIRE OVERSEAS AND LIVE LIKE ROYALTY

Sign up for FREE and learn how to live the good life on a modest budget, find bargain property, and more. Plus, check out our free report on the 10 BEST PLACES TO RETIRE.

We Value Your Privacy! We will not share your email address with anyone else, period.