Two years ago I packed up my life in Amsterdam and moved to Dublin. I had a job offer, a suitcase, and zero understanding of how hard finding accommodation in Dublin actually is.
I thought I knew rental markets. Amsterdam is expensive. London is expensive. But Dublin is a different kind of broken.
Within a week of arriving I was spending three hours a day refreshing Daft.ie during work meetings, writing the same inquiry email over and over.
HomeScout is what came out of that experience. Not because I had a startup idea. Because I was an expat in Dublin who could not believe how bad the system was.
What moving to Dublin as an expat actually looks like
You land. You open Daft.ie. The first five pages are luxury new-builds. The normal places are buried on page eight.
You find a two-bed in Rathmines for €1,800. Is that a good price? You have no idea. You are making a €21,600-a-year decision completely blind.
What I actually built
AI-powered natural language search. Type what you want. HomeScout understands natural language and returns exactly what you described.
Area intelligence. Every listing shows average rent, price comparisons, and trends.
AI contract review. Upload your lease. HomeScout flags unusual clauses and checks RPZ compliance.
AI rental agent. Writes personalised inquiry emails, schedules viewings, follows up.
Five languages. English, Dutch, Spanish, French, and Portuguese.
What I learned
Build what you need. Remove more than you add. AI is only useful when it saves real time.
If you are moving to Dublin — HomeScout is free to start. No credit card, no trial period.
Caspar Bannink — founder of HomeScout, built in Dublin after moving from Amsterdam in 2024.
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