Return to parents’ home It has become an increasingly common trend among young people (and not so young) due to the high price of housing both for sale and for rent. This is not a problem that affects only Spain, but appears in other countries such as Ireland where a 34-year-old single mother named Samantha Sheehy has returned to her childhood room, with a narrow bed that she shares with her son and her elderly mother. He helps with expenses such as electricity bills, water bills and groceries, but wants to live independently.
But he can’t, as he explains in the diary RTE where he has told how his father, sick, seeks tranquility and sleep alone. “It is very narrow and small,” he says. “To be honest, my situation is not the most suitable for my mental health, I am trapped and I can’t get out.” Every day, he checks the ads to rent a home, but finds prohibitive prices. “They ask me for 2.00 euros in advance and 1,500 euros per month, obviously, I can’t pay that,” he protests.
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“My father and mother need their space and so do I, to be with my son.” She is waiting for someone to call her from Carlow Council, where she lives. Four years ago he joined a list to get one of the social housing with affordable rents or sales prices. “Looking for a house is ridiculous, if I’m completely honest,” she tells the journalist, “they are too expensive.”
In a few days, the Irish Government is going to present a housing plan with which to face the crisis. “Hopefully there are houses that can be delivered to the families who need them, especially those of us who have children.”
“A two-bedroom house is sold for 325,000 euros… and needs renovations”
Another of those affected by this housing crisis in Ireland is Doireann Ni Chonghaile, who adjusts all pending real estate visits to her agenda. “They have pointed us out as possible buyers of a home in Crumlin, which is a town in Dublin, but the house costs 325,000 euros and needs to be renovated.”
A year ago he asked the bank about the options he had to pay a mortgage and they told him that he should adjust his budget. “Since then I have not stopped looking for a home, I have called real estate agencies and I have visited many, with dozens of offers… when you buy alone you face couples who are also interested and, of course, they have twice the purchasing power than you… it is demoralizing.”
Despite her job, she is a civil servant, and the fact that she saves money on fuel since she travels by bicycle, “I am not picky about the location of the house.” He has participated in several bids where he is surprised by the number of people who are looking for a home. “Sometimes open visits are organized and when I see the demand in relation to the supply that there is, I am impressed, the homes soon disappear from the real estate portals.”
What hurts him the most is the amount of time he has been paying rent. “I could have already paid half of the mortgage.”