Rents fall again

RENTS in Clare have fallen again this year bringing them on average to €210 less than their peak it was revealed this week. This went against the national trend where rents rose by half a percent.
In Munster, rents fell by an average of 0.5% in the first three months of 2011, a significantly smaller fall than that seen between September and December. The average rent in Clare in the first quarter of 2011 was €590, a fall of €210 from the peak.
For those from Clare renting in Ireland’s cities, rents went up marginally in Dublin to €1,057 over the past year but rose by almost 3% in Cork to €869 on average. Rents in Galway fell to €746, in Limerick they dropped by 2.3% to €639 and in Waterford rents in the past year have plummeted by 6% to €639.
Commenting on the report, Ronan Lyons, economist at Daft.ie, said, “The latest figures confirm the first signs of stabilisation in rents, which emerged from Dublin and Cork in early 2010. However, while rents are rising in some urban centres, there is still significant overhang in other parts of the market, which is pushing down rents. What we may be seeing is the emergence of a two-tier rental market, reflecting different levels of property oversupply around the country and indeed different labour market outlooks.”
Rent-a-room income outside the cities varies by area, with falling income over the past year in most areas. In Munster, the rent for a single room is €227, up more than 10% since this time last year. However, double rooms are down by 3% now renting for an average of €252 in the region and vacancy rates now stand at almost 13%.
The average rent in Munster is €638 down 3.5% from last year and down just 0.5% on the last quarter of 2010. Rents in Munster are down more than 25% from their peak, with a greater percentage fall experienced in the Dublin commuter counties.