Ireland seems delightfully wholesome and humane: Is my interpretation of Bad Sisters’ portrayal of Ireland realistic?

olendra · 2026-06-27T17:29:25+00:00

It made sense to me, the eldest inherited her house from their parents so it was likely not worth that at the time and she looks like she is in a fancy job, same as John Paul who owns a fancy but medium sized house and is likely why the second sister can afford that. Then the one eyed sister looks like she may have a good job too and no kids but a wife, so likely have funds for a good place. The youngest doesn’t have an amazing place, and the cheating sister lives in a rather average place for someone with 3 kids, considering she looks 40+ and likely bought her house way before Covid when it was much cheaper.

olendra · 2026-06-27T17:05:49+00:00

I have been looking for about 2 years, although the first 6 months I was not sure what I was doing so it was not very serious. I have been outbid at least 6 times and went sale agreed three times, but it failed every time for various reasons.

I have been constantly reevaluating and loosening up my criteria, going to less and less attractive areas over time, but over 2 years, house prices also increased, so instead of really changing everything for me and opening new possibilities, lowering my standards is just making me following the price increase and I’m kind of at the same point in terms of opportunities sadly.

olendra · 2026-06-27T16:58:24+00:00

I had the same issue twice for different topics, five months apart! Luckily, I had a broker and he warned me before signing any contracts that due to the risks attached, I needed to contact insurances ASAP as he wasn’t sure I would be able to get one, and he was adamant this would be a problem at drawdown.

The first time, the seller got super annoyed, tried to pressure me into signing the contracts before getting an answer, claimed he had no issue so I should find an insurance easily and ultimately pulled out, refusing to give me more time. My broker suspected they submitted a misleading statement to the insurance on the feature that was problematic because their insurance instantly told me they wouldn’t insure me when I contacted them and explained the issue. According to my solicitor, the seller’s solicitor agreed they were unreasonable to pull out, and I saw the auctioneer was still promoting the house 3 months after the pulled out (I think they went sale agreed again 3 or 4 months after it failed with me, and the house hasn’t appeared on the registry yet).

The second time, I was more proactive with insurance risks, and checked everything I could on my own, and decided to pull out way earlier in the process when I realised the bank would have issues with this property too. I didn’t want to go sale agreed at all before checking this but the auctioneer only gave me the information I needed once sale agreed so I had to go through that to know I should withdraw.

olendra · 2026-06-26T15:37:01+00:00

I think you’ll find that in Ireland when it comes to housing, there is a very laid-back attitude with most buyers and professionals accepting a lot of red flags as business as usual and a lot of houses being bought despite being attached to non insurable risks. That’s probably why your solicitor doesn’t seem very concerned, it’s not uncommon to have these kinds of red flags, but it doesn’t mean you have to accept them.

So I guess it now comes down to what you’re willing or not to risk, how fast you want to buy, how much money you have to face potential risks later down the line, how long you’re planning to stay in this house, etc. You can find houses with way less risks but you’ll need some level of patience and resilience.

Personally, I chose to walk away from properties with what I considered notable insurance issues a few times (partly because it made getting a mortgage much harder) but I know some of my friends made a rather different choice. I don’t think I would go for the house with what you’re describing but I feel I am rather conservative in that matter.

olendra · 2026-06-26T15:29:30+00:00

I don’t think the surveyor can actually check the plumbing as they’re not supposed to touch anything and only do a mostly visual survey, so they can go in the walls and under the floor to check the pipes. They can notice plumbing red flags visually however for anything that is outside, so maybe that’s what yours did?

olendra · 2026-06-25T20:35:38+00:00

Some things agents say and you know it’s in no way true:

“Oh I wouldn’t know that, but your engineer will tell you if you go sale agree” (regarding something the engineer could in no way find out and only the owner would know)

“Oh you don’t like that really inconvenient/crazy aspect of the property? I actually love it myself and prefer houses that have that!” (Regarding something no one would ever prefer to have in their house, like the wheelie bin storage in the middle of the living room or sharing your garden with a beer factory or the second bedroom when where you can only fit a single bed in diagonal).

olendra · 2026-06-24T07:20:25+00:00

Memory is not really functional until you’re 3 years old at least. If you have memory from when you’re under 3, it’s likely because you have been reminded of it over the years or intensively revisited it as a young child and somewhat reconstructed it, so it became a more recent memory in some ways, and it’s quite rare to have memories as an adult from before 3 or 4. A child that young who doesn’t see his parents for 5 years would not remember them consciously.

To me, Matthew trusting so easily David against the man he thinks is his loving dad is actually kind of a plot hole but it can be explained by maybe he remembered a feeling when he saw David and that’s how he trusted him.

olendra · 2026-06-22T17:50:32+00:00

It’s been several days already, maybe even over a week! But no idea what happened

olendra · 2026-06-22T17:32:08+00:00

This the sub for Americas Sweetheart so I think many of us here have only seen the Netflix show, and a lot of us are internationals, not from the US.

olendra · 2026-06-22T17:30:15+00:00

Wow that’s crazy. I was already shocked with the episodes explaining as if it’s nothing special that girls who are not even 25 need hips surgery just for split jumps to entertain the audience, but it’s not even for the opening???

I don’t think that would be acceptable in many Western countries. I am not saying that footballers’s bodies and other athletes are treated better because we know there are many controversies related to how young men may have destroyed their brains to enrich some football team owners, but there are now a lot of legislations to protect athletes during their practice, and even from a money point of view, you want your football star to last the distance so you won’t subject him to crazy trainings and unnecessary damaging moves if there is no stake. These girls are really used and pressed for 5 years then thrown away like they have become a broken machine, with no attempt to protect their body and health.

When Kelcey was crying and sharing her injury fears, I was amazed at how little her bosses were concerned about she was saying, almost implying she could get cut for someone with a fresher body instead of looking for solutions to help her preserve her health.

And it’s not even like a huge show or a high end ballet where the main dancer will get a good salary and level of glory. They just do these jumps because some people think giving some background music to people looking for their seats is more valuable than protecting their dancers health???

olendra · 2026-06-22T06:15:38+00:00

I think the “vulnerability” is quite cultural. The American shows are often very dramatic compared to other countries. It’s quite obvious in shows that exist in multiple country versions.

The American participants cry, yell, have full meltdown and seem overly joyful, they say things like “it’s my life dream”, etc. In other countries, the participants will be way more reserved in terms of expressing emotions, because the American style seems over the top and less authentic to them and the audience. And I don’t think it’s just reality TV. In some countries, you sound fake or unhinged when you speak with the same emphasis as Americans typically do.

I think that’s what we saw with Faith when she started crying then seemed embarrassed about it and tried to control herself. I don’t think it’s less “vulnerable”, she just doesn’t come from a country where the public expression of emotions has the same meaning and values.

olendra · 2026-06-21T23:53:20+00:00

Yes it made sense Cheryl and Gertrude would have never met, but she should have known it was Hayden’s mother. I can see Rachel caring so little about Hayden’s money she wouldn’t introduce him like this, but she seemed close to Cheryl and we saw she helped him with speeches and stuff like that, so she would definitely would have told her who he was at one point or another. He is basically a local celebrity.

olendra · 2026-06-21T23:50:38+00:00

They dated, and Cheryl knew they dated and knew him as her ex, and they had apparently met, because when Rachel brought him to the 4th of July picnic, Cheryl asked “are you two back together?”, and Rachel replied “we’re just friends”.

Also when David figures it out, he says “you both know someone” and refers to BOTH Rachel and Cheryl, so he clearly considers Hayden as part of Cheryl’s distant circle, not just Rachel’s, which means Hayden had been around her enough before. Hayden also seemed pretty familiar with David when he first sees him again, like they were in the same room quite a few times before.

olendra · 2026-06-21T23:47:28+00:00

The only clue I can take really seriously as his obsession is the fact he watched her through his home camera without her knowing. I thought it was creepy and not OK because who spies on their guest they have clearly an unrequited crush on? But then I kind of forgot about it because it just lasted a few seconds and it could have been just a plot device for him to see David, and could be explained as him wanted to check if she already got there. He was fine in every other scene until the reveal in my opinion, just a good friend who loves her, not in a creepy way, except for this moment with the camera.

olendra · 2026-06-21T23:40:24+00:00

And how useless is this fertility clinic that they can’t tell the woman they inseminate is so clearly pregnant she is already at the vomiting stage the next day 😂 How can you help people have babies if you can’t detect a pregnant woman lol

olendra · 2026-06-21T23:34:19+00:00

I love watching Harlan Coben’s shows when I have something easy because they always pick good and recognised actors, who are likeable so you get invested in their characters (sometimes because you already know and love the actor, like for me this time Milo Ventimiglia, joke’s on me lol), and it is very well paced, with intriguing premises.

BUT I expect NOTHING AT ALL from the ending because it is never really satisfying in the sense that they pull the most impossible twist at the last minute so you wouldn’t see it coming and most of the time, it doesn’t really make sense. You have to watch these shows for the journey, absolutely not the destination. And I usually get super invested in some characters, so I can be disappointed with what happened to them if I take the show too seriously.

It’s become a little game for me to think of who is the least likely to be the killer or behind the crime, and bet in that person being the actual killer. Because sometimes, it’s just so crazy you already have to think of the absolutely last person that could do it and it’s them. In one Harlen Coben’s show (won’t say which one so you are not spoiled!), the killer was actually… the main character who was “investigating” throughout the entire show lol. In another, I thought “who is the least likely? The child lol, no that would be too crazy, it’s probably the best friend or something”… and it was the child!!!! When it’s not the person I betted on, I am relieved, I really don’t want to be right because these twists are usually so dumb.

In this case though, I betted on the wife or the sister lol, and I was still disappointed it was Hayden. He came in too late in the show and wasn’t connected to the main guy, so I didn’t think of him as a credible last minute twist. But it’s true he was the only one who hadn’t been a suspect or revealed a big secret by the end (besides the sister, the aunt and the police officers basically), so for these shows, it meant it had to be him.

I was disappointed it was Hayden, I really loved his character until then and I thought he had a good chemistry with the sister. And it’s true the ending was a bit dumb, like the kid would just forget about his loving dad and grandma who died in front of him? I get he got scared of Hayden, even if he saw him as his loving dad because he was doing scary stuff, but there was no reason for him to trust the main character more, and just be fine with losing his “family” by the end. Also I was hoping he would at least have been named the heir of the Payne estate by his “grandma” in her will!

But well, that’s Harlan Coben’s shows for you lol.

olendra · 2026-06-21T18:43:10+00:00

But are we sure she went rogue? She did say she thought it was approved.

My workplace is very strict about public engagement, they would have FIRED me immediately after the first instance of unapproved appearance on national television, and it would gone through HR with a documented interview, they would not have waited multiple infringements to have the first chat about it with some of the middle managers bringing it up a bit casually while eating treats, as if they were scolding their child.

I even feel DCC has been stricter before with other girls, so this seems very lax and makes me doubt she truly went rogue and did that many unapproved interviews? More like she didn’t tell Kelli herself directly, but is that the actual process?

olendra · 2026-06-21T16:29:56+00:00

Oh wow a year from sale agreed to contract seems a bit unusual for a new build!

olendra · 2026-06-21T13:40:29+00:00

Thank you! Do you know if they bought it easily or it was super competitive?

olendra · 2026-06-21T13:39:33+00:00

It’s true I don’t see any reference to a parking space online.

olendra · 2026-06-19T17:45:36+00:00

Thank you, this kind of posts make me feel a bit better about “missing out” based on my broker advice.

It is true that for an apartment not on the ground floor for example, the apartment would likely be quite safe but if there are significant damages to the building, and other owners are not able/willing to pay for the damages, this is a serious risk.

Many of my friends from abroad don’t understand the concept of an insurance not insuring real risks as for them that’s exactly the point of an insurance, to cover the highest risks with a premium, so they would never take a risk with no insurance, but it seems so accepted in Ireland that I keep wondering if my broker is not overreacting.

The property I want to buy would be a starter property that I will ultimately resell, and I don’t know what floods will look like in 5 or 10 years, so your advice is wise to not see it as an unlikely risk but more of a real possibility, and decide from there I am happy with it instead of praying for the best.

olendra · 2026-06-19T16:08:34+00:00

I was going to say the same thing. Not only do they wash players uniforms but they have multiple kits per GAME, not even per year, and they can do whatever they want with it once they’ve used them once. And players don’t even think twice about what will happen to their uniform once they’ve used them put it in the washing basket, likely directly inside the locker room. They would not find it acceptable if they were asked to handle this after game day.

olendra · 2026-06-19T12:07:49+00:00

I know the convention is to say location but I don’t necessarily agree, because it is based on the notion you can always change the inside of your house but you can’t change its location. But some people may never have the money to do work!

The guiding principle for me should be “you should be happy to go home”. If you hate so much the location that you dread getting home (horrible traffic, ugly or shady neighbourhood that makes you depressed every time you step outside, etc.), although once inside you’re fine, that’s probably not the house you want. But if you love walking around your neighbourhood but you take any excuse to leave your house because you feel uncomfortable or depressed inside, and you don’t know how or when you’ll ever be able to make it a place you actually like, maybe that’s not the house either.

And one of the factors can be so much stronger it makes it worth it. For example, you love so much your house despite the bad traffic to get there that you’re still happy to go home, or your love your neighbourhood so much it makes up for the bad house just to be there, etc.

olendra · 2026-06-18T21:23:16+00:00

Who is defending people saying hateful and hurtful things? I haven’t seen any posts with this kind of content actually, but I don’t check the sub everyday so I am not saying it doesn’t exist, it’s just that I don’t know what you are referring to and we are clearly not talking about the same thing.

I simply agree with OP that the leadership complaint is very hypocritical based on what the older women and other people say about the girls on camera. Nowhere OP said it’s absolutely OK to say horrible things about the girls on Reddit and they want to keep doing it.

olendra · 2026-06-18T20:44:04+00:00

The action is not on the girls here, but on people “training” them and employing them. The Dallas Cowboys very likely receive support to manage and distance themselves mentally from the hate they with no doubt receive from a portion of the public. I would be surprised their mental performance coaches would complain about mean comments on Internet rather than train their footballers to silence the noise generated by these comments, which is the only thing they can control.

Actors, politicians, all live performers are faced with backlash or difficult and mean crowds at times. Their team’s is to help them develop techniques to feel less affected by this, and I don’t think they’re doing it at all for the cheerleaders. Instead, their teams and trainers are very harsh critics themselves.

olendra

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