LAST year marked a “bumper year” for the prime country home market, according to property advisor, Savills Ireland, with luxury properties in Cork County proving the most popular location for homebuyers.

Using Property Price Register data, Savills examined prime country home transactions, which are defined as transactions greater than €1m and located outside of Dublin, the major regional cities, and north Wicklow.

In 2022, €198m worth of transactions took place – the highest level since the Property Price Register was introduced in 2012.

Interestingly, with the average deal value remaining at approximately €1.5m, the increase was driven by more transactions taking place in 2022, with 130 compared to 86 in 2021.

International buyers accounted for 43 percent of deals, while cash buyers remained the dominant financing arrangement, with 90 percent of buyers in this market segment acquiring properties without financing agreements, up from 87 percent in 2021.

“Prime country homes continue to be in strong demand as remote or flexible working is now a viable working pattern for many.

“Furthermore, buyers in this segment of the market are likely to be in more senior positions so are granted more flexibility in how they allocate time between the office and working from home,” James Butler, head of country agency at Savills Ireland, commented. 

Cork County was the most popular location in Savills’ analysis of prime country home transactions, making up 28 percent of all purchases in 2022.

“The coastal town of Kinsale on the southern coast of Cork was the country’s most popular town in this housing market segment, making up nine percent of transactions,” Catherine McAuliffe, director at Savills Cork, said.