Posts by Laura

As the discussion around tenants’ rights and housing regulations intensifies, the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) has recently put forward a series of recommendations aimed at addressing the issue of illegal evictions. While these recommendations have been hailed as essential protections for tenants, it is crucial to examine them from a reasonable perspective, taking into account…

As Ireland’s original alternative real estate funder, we see first-hand the dynamics of the Irish housing market play out, and one glaring issue that continues to hinder progress is the interplay between a severe shortage of houses for buyers, and developers grappling with planning challenges. These are not opposing issues, addressing one will allow us…

The Irish property market continues to experience significant growth, with house prices rising by 8.9% in the first quarter of 2023 compared to the same period last year. This data comes from a recent report by proptech start-up Geowox, which provides insights based on sales prices rather than asking prices, offering a more accurate representation…

A recently commissioned  cost comparison study from Mitchell McDermot,  which found that the cost of constructing homes in Dublin is 15-30% higher than in four other comparable European cities, has been presented to the Cabinet this week. The study cited higher labour costs in Ireland as the key factor, but also noted that added features…

While we acknowledge the progress made in recent years, we have certainly been critical of many aspects of the Government’s performance on housing delivery and have repeatedly called for braver policymaking to address the core issue, which is lack of supply.   This week, we saw some brave and unpopular policymaking.  And it might actually…

The housing crisis in Ireland has evolved into a housing emergency, even if the Government of the day has yet to declare it as such. Every day, the media reports on how the persistent  shortage of affordable homes is leaving many people struggling to find suitable accommodation. A headline in the Irish Independent this week…

Amid the recent political wrangling over the ending of the rental eviction ban, the real issue at the core of Ireland’s housing crisis has been overlooked, that is, the lack of supply and a broken planning regime that is largely to blame.  An Bord Pleanála has just 70 inspectors and 15 board members to regulate…

It has been another revealing week for the Irish property market.  First, newly released figures show that the Department of Housing has failed to spend over €1 billion of its capital budget earmarked for housing between 2020 and 2022. The unspent funds could have provided an additional 4,000 social and affordable homes, which would have…

What goes up…  Ireland’s property market is experiencing a slight dip in house prices, according to the latest report from Daft.ie. The report shows that prices fell by 0.3 percent in the first quarter of 2023, the first time in a decade that a first-quarter fall in asking prices has been recorded. The average national…

With so much conflicting news and commentary about Ireland’s rental market over the past few weeks, it was great to get some on-the-ground insights at the Irish Home Builders Association housing conference this week.  Most shockingly, Sherry FitzGerald confirmed that the rental market in Ireland has shrunk by 80,000 homes in the last decade. At…