Galway is the top destination in Ireland for people who are considering relocating due to the availability of remote working.
The National Remote Working Survey by NUI Galway and the Western Development Commission found that 10.1% of people who are considering relocating said that Galway is the place in Ireland that they would most like to move to.
Coastal counties were clearly people’s preferred destinations, as the next most sough after counties are Cork (9.2%), and Wicklow (5.9%).
But more even than moving to the coast, there are a large number of people who want to move out of Ireland altogether, with 16.8% saying that they would consider moving out of Ireland.
This is the third annual National Remote Working Survey carried out by the Western Development Commission, and NUI Galway’s Whitaker Institute.
Of the people who responded to the survey, some 10% said that they had already relocated due to the pandemic, and remote working.
“This supports anecdotal evidence and stories that are familiar to many of friends and colleagues that have moved to more regional and rural locations,” said Tomás Ó SÃocháin, chief executive of the WDC.
“This trend highlights the importance of remote work in supporting balanced regional development and initiatives like the ConnectedHubs network and legislative support for remote work can sustain these trends into the future.”
Of those who have already moved, nearly two-thirds had left Dublin, while 7.4% had moved out of Galway.
Other findings from the analysis shows that those who have relocated have a higher level of formal education with 48% of those who have relocated having a masters or doctoral degree.
The survey also highlighted that more women than men have relocated and of those who already relocated because they can work remotely 46% rented their home, and 54% owned their home.
