I've been working in Cork a couple of years ago (callcenter…), and wasn't too excited about the living conditions. Very high rent for pretty bad apartments, and the city itself was a pretty bad mix between some money spent on the inner city and pretty rundown estates all around. Granted, once you leave the city, it's gorgeous…
Remember the Irish property bubble bust around 2007. Prices have come down a bit since then (current stats have houses worth half what they used to be). Rent has decreased a little, but not that much.
On the other hand, a financial crisis probably won't make for a more enjoyable cityscape. But given that I was there 2003, the property bubble might have improved the architecture of the city a bit before it burst…
Total cost of living was pretty high, and I'm coming from one of the more expensive regions in Europe. I'll definitely have to visit again. A callcenter job and depressed Scandinavian roomates probably colored my impressions a bit…
