Rents rise 10.8% in Clare

While rents rose nationwide by an average of 11.7% in the year to September 2016, in Clare rents increased by 10.8%, according to the latest quarterly Rental Report by Ireland’s No.1 Property Website Daft.ie.

This is the largest annual increase in rents ever recorded in the Daft.ie Report, which extends back to 2002.

In Clare, rents were on average 10.8% higher in the third quarter of 2016 than a year previously. The average advertised rent is now €655, up 24% from their lowest point.

In Dublin, the annual rate of inflation in rents, in the year to September 2016, was 12.1%, its highest late since late 2014. Rents in the capital are now 9.3% higher than their previous peak in early 2008. In Cork, rents rose by 14.4% in the year to September, a slight easing of inflation compared to earlier in the year.

Rents in Galway are 10.9% higher than a year previously, while rents in Limerick have risen 13.2% in the last year. In Waterford city, rents have risen by 11.2% in twelve months, while outside the major cities, the increase has been 10.9%.

There were just over 3,600 properties available to rent nationwide on October 1st, the lowest figure for October since the start of the series in 2006. For comparison, two years previously, on October 1st 2014, there were almost 6,000 properties listed nationwide.

Commenting on the report, Ronan Lyons, economist at TCD and author of the Daft Report, said: “The figures from the third quarter of 2016 are worrying. They include a new all-time high for the average monthly rent nationwide, the highest rate of annual inflation on record, as well as the joint highest quarterly increase in rents. The increases stem from strong demand and very weak supply. In order to bring about more rental supply, policymakers urgently need to audit the cost of building homes in Ireland compared to other high-income countries.”