RENTS in Cork City rose nearly 15% in the last year, with the average rent standing close to €1,800 a month.

According to the latest Rental Report by Daft.ie, market rents nationally in the final quarter of 2022 were an average of 13.7% higher than the same period a year earlier.

The average market rent nationwide between October and December was €1,733 per month, up 2.7% on the third quarter and 126% above the low of €765 seen in late 2011.

In Cork City, rents have risen by 14.9% in the last year and the average rent is now €1,768.

In the rest of Cork, market rents were on average 9.1% higher in the final three months of 2022 compared to the same period in 2021 with the average rent at €1,327.

According to the report, rents in Munster rose 11.4% year-on-year, reflecting very low availability. Just 131 houses were available to rent in the province on February 1. The report also includes an index of rents paid by sitting tenants, rather than movers, using a bespoke survey of tenants. It shows on average, rents paid by sitting tenants have increased by 3.8% over the last year.

Since the introduction of rent pressure zones in 2016, rents of sitting tenants have risen 19% on average, against an average rise in open market rents of nearly 75% over the same period. 

Socialist Party TD for Cork North Central, Mick Barry said that the report highlights the need for the extension of rent controls. “It’s incredible that it now costs well over €20,000 to rent for a year in Cork City. “Landlords are using the open goal the Government gave them’ the open market loophole, to just bypass the Government’s rent controls.

“And it’s clear that young people are the big losers, unable to buy, unable to rent, forced to stay at home with parents for longer and longer,” he said.

Sinn Féin TD for Cork North Central, Thomas Gould said people earning decent incomes are now struggling to afford rent. “When people working in well-paid jobs cannot even begin to consider renting, there is a huge problem.

“Previously, those who struggled to pay rent in the city could consider moving to a more rural area and face a longer commute. With average rents in Cork county now above €,1200, this isn’t even an option for many working families and individuals,” he said. 

“The reality is without increased supply, without making social housing and homeownership a reality again, rents will continue to rise.”

Trinity College Dublin associate professor of economics and author of the Daft report Ronan Lyons, said the latest figures “confirm, once again, the chronic shortage of rental housing in all parts of the Irish market. The extraordinary collapse in availability over the past two years has brought about record increases in open market rents. New rental supply is the only real solution to a shortage of rental homes,” he said.

Mr Lyons said a more tenure-neutral housing policy must be implemented.