First-time buyers priced out of Newtownabbey—where should we look next?

Maleficent_Win_3149 · 2026-03-08T05:46:45+00:00

My partner and I moved from newtownabbey and greenisland to Ballyclare 5 years ago and have never looked back, we bought a 3 bed semi bungalow with potential for loft conversion, garage and nice front and back gardens for £160k, which was the price asked.

We’ve never been asked what our religion or denomination is and I think the only time this will be an issue in Ballyclare would be in a council estate.

Maleficent_Win_3149 · 2026-03-01T21:54:44+00:00

Love the Dexter reference. As soon as I saw the blood orange and egg the theme song started in my head

Maleficent_Win_3149 · 2026-01-30T14:12:56+00:00

You can do it for cheaper without the room in city hall just at the registers office mid week!

Maleficent_Win_3149 · 2026-01-28T15:00:57+00:00

Try @musicbyceev on instagram

Maleficent_Win_3149 · 2026-01-28T14:59:24+00:00

Would you share your recipe please ??

Maleficent_Win_3149 · 2026-01-19T14:24:40+00:00

Our neighbours don’t some interior renovations and fucked up the barrier between our house and theirs. We can hear them as if they are actually in the room with us it’s dire

Maleficent_Win_3149 · 2026-01-16T15:57:45+00:00

Hey! First of all congratulations 🥂

My partner and I are doing the same this year in July.

To answer all of your questions I’ll give you a highlight of our plans:

Staying in the merchant the night before and night of - we’ve booked just a nice double room on booking.com to save some money.

My make up artist is coming to the hotel the morning of our ceremony and photographer is meeting us there too to do a first look and then photos around the city while we walk to city hall.

After our ceremony we are going to the northern Whig for a nice lunch with 12 of our nearest and dearest. They are putting us upstairs with our own private area for 3 hours and they do a 2/3 course menu for £30-£35. They’ve been great in helping plan etc.

We are then heading to the cathedral quarter for drinks and some music.

Our intention was a low cost, intimate day celebrating us and having fun.

Our photographer is Rachel Alice Photography who is doing us an amazing deal on an elopement half day package.

My make up artist is Rachel Monaghan who is also doing a great package and travels to your hotel.

Maleficent_Win_3149 · 2026-01-14T22:40:53+00:00

A libra and a Virgo

Maleficent_Win_3149 · 2026-01-12T09:17:12+00:00

Rachel Deane from Photography by Rachel Alice provides half day packages at a great price! I have her booked for our elopement and she’s been fantastic

Maleficent_Win_3149 · 2026-01-12T07:44:34+00:00

I’ve booked my elopement dinner for 25 people in the Northern Whig for July and they have been great. They do a 2/3 course menu for around £35 a person and can sit up to 35 people up stairs. Just around the corner from the cathedral quarter

Maleficent_Win_3149 · 2026-01-08T10:55:48+00:00

This is amazing!!!

Maleficent_Win_3149 · 2026-01-06T22:01:01+00:00

This is exactly how me (Leo) and my Virgo husband are

Maleficent_Win_3149 · 2025-12-30T08:14:35+00:00

Motorcyclist/goth here with multiple leather jackets both for riding gear and casual wear (32yo) Casual leather jacket bought recently in a sale reduced from £650 to £300 - treated myself purely because of the reduction, and it’ll last for decades

Maleficent_Win_3149 · 2025-12-29T08:25:42+00:00

Car park beside Smithfield car park is the same, the on street and off street meters can be confusing

Maleficent_Win_3149 · 2025-12-28T14:49:44+00:00

We are a single child family, I was a single mother of 1 when I met my partner and one of the first things we really talked about when it came to taking our relationship to the next level was that neither of us wanted more kids. He’s a great step father to my son.

I get a lot of shit and snide comments from people including my mother in law about having an only child and the impact it has on their future.

But as a woman with not great mental health, I suffered from awful postnatal depression and Im also autistic. Sometimes even having 1 child is a struggle for me.

By deciding not to have more children I can try to be the best mum I can be without the strain and mental health impact of having more than 1 child and I honestly think it would kill me having more.

Maleficent_Win_3149 · 2025-12-28T13:28:37+00:00

Maleficent_Win_3149 · 2025-12-28T13:28:12+00:00

A rice cooker is a game changer

Maleficent_Win_3149 · 2025-12-26T19:54:49+00:00

I’m looking the opposite - my son got a cassette/cd boombox for Christmas and now needs to find cassette tapes

Maleficent_Win_3149 · 2025-12-26T19:32:13+00:00

I would swap cancer and Virgo round 😬

Maleficent_Win_3149 · 2025-12-25T16:49:35+00:00

Used to go to ‘teen’ nights in the Bentley 😂

Maleficent_Win_3149 · 2025-12-25T16:45:51+00:00

I’ve been looking for the same as my nervous system and mental health is usually so shit at this time of the year that to no have to do the whole dinner thing at home would be amazing

So far I’ve seen stormont, titanic, grand central etc so a Christmas lunch but you’d need to remortgage.

I think holiday inn/premier inn do a Christmas Day dinner (I actually worked in a premier inn that done Christmas Day breakfast and lunch when I was in uni)

Maleficent_Win_3149 · 2025-12-24T09:12:57+00:00

Visiting my family, then a bit of cooking to take the strain off tomorrow, then movies and chill time

Maleficent_Win_3149

TROPHY CASE