. . . as moving back to the city is costly, says Edel Morgan

The latest PTSB/ERSI house price index predicts the average house price in Dublin will top €400,000 before the end of 2006. For anyone lucky enough to own a home in Dublin, a compelling past-time can be to go online and gaze at the more palatial properties you could afford elsewhere if you were to sell up and move out the city.

In recent weeks three properties crossed my desk which had me daydreaming about abandoning city life to run B & Bs in locations as diverse as the Burren, Roscommon and France. One was a 557sq m (6,000sq ft) farmhouse cum arts centre in Elphin, Co Roscommon for €295,000. At almost six times the size of my own house, the idea of rattling around its 20 or so rooms holds an incredible appeal. Slightly less appealing would be having to clean those 20 or so rooms.

I also had my head turned by an idyllic period house in south-west France for €475,000 which is currently trading as a four-star B & B. That same week I wrote about a refurbished six-bed B & B near the Burren on five acres of woodland for €525,000. I came back to earth with a bump when, after enthusing aloud about it, a colleague said: "So you could really see yourself running a guest-house?" OK, frying sausages at 7am is an aspect I'd overlooked but it's nice to dream.

And it appears I'm not the only one given the popularity of our Take 5 column. The column features four incredible properties you can buy abroad for around the same price as a fairly modest one here. Last week you got the choice of a three-bed bungalow on Sorrento Road in Dalkey with an AMV of €1.3 million or a 60-acre island off the coast of Maine. If an island is too high maintenance, you could buy a mansion on the Cote D'Azur or a grade two listed four-bed windmill in Sussex for around the same price.

Currently on the market for €400,000 in Dublin are an end-of-terrace three-bed house on Errigal Road in Drimnagh, a two-bed terraced house on Rosemount Terrace in Old Kilmainham and a one-bed apartment in Coopers Yard, Smithfield.

For the same price as these terraced houses and one-bed apartment, you can buy a virtual mansion with room for a pony (and a swimming pool if required) in Leitrim - which appears to have the best value in property in Ireland.

Currently on the market in Keshcarrigan is a positively sprawling 279 sq m bungalow on over an acre overlooking Lough Scur. Costrea House, a restored stone-fronted detached house on one acre near Carrick-on-Shannon, is on the market for €295,000. For those with more to spend, Lake View House in Drumkeeran, a country house needing refurbishment on 40 acres fronting Belhaval Lake, costs €550,000. For the same asking price in Dublin is a a two-bed apartment in Saffron House, Sutton and a two-bed cottage on Strandville Avenue, North Strand.

In Co Clare, €400,000 is the price for a 205sq m (2,207sq ft) detached house near Kinvara in the Burren on a large site with a walk-in-wardrobe, Jacuzzi and conservatory. A new detached six-bed 231sq m (2,486sq ft) house in Kilrush on a 0.7-acre site - also with that all important walk-in wardrobe - costs €330,000. In Duncannon, Co Wexford, €400,000 is the price tag on a four-bed house with a three-bed apartment within walking distance of beach.

The urge to bolt the rat race hits most city dwellers at some point but, as the heat is turned up on the pressure-cooker environment that is city life, a growing number are acting on impulse. Before uprooting yourself and your family with some vague notion of retiring to the country to make your own cheese, it's important to do your homework.

I previously wrote about a couple who moved to the west of Ireland to escape the drudgery of a big mortgage but who soon discovered their move was ill-judged. They gave up high powered jobs in the IT industry with a view to freelancing from their new house but found it impossible to get a comparable variety of work. The only accessible social outlet was the pub and their only way of reaching it was by car. On the plus side, there was a thriving local arts scene but they felt alienated from locals who dismissed them as arty types.

If it doesn't work out, you may find Dublin prices have galloped ahead while your existing property has appreciated at a slower pace. This may rule out a return or force you to compromise on location. A family I know of moved to France at the start of the property boom after selling their Clontarf home for what was then a top price of around €300,000. This allowed them to buy a substantial property in France. However, should they ever decide to return, their French property is now worth under €500,000 while a house comparable to the one they had in Dublin would cost €1.2 million.

I also recently heard of a couple who moved to Italy and are renting a farmhouse for a nominal sum while they settle in. This is often a good idea before selling up and cutting ties. Another option for some could be to hold on to your Irish property and release equity to buy a place in your chosen destination.