Rent pressure zones announcement leading to landlords leaving the market
Kenneth Fox
The announcement of a nationwide rent pressure zone has triggered a sharp increase in landlords exiting the housing market, a new house price survey has revealed.
The Government’s announcement in June was followed by an immediate spike in landlord sales in many areas now included in the legislation, the Real Estate Alliance (REA) Average House Price Index shows.
REA agents in Carlow, Kerry, and Waterford have reported that over 40 per cent of their sales are attributable to landlords in the past three months – with that figure rising to 60 per cent in Limerick city.
In Nenagh, Tipperary, the exodus of landlords was a factor in 80 per cent of sales in the last quarter, with the increase in supply leading to a 6 per cent fall in sales prices.
“The reality is that what we have seen in some towns in the past three months could well be repeated in upcoming quarters as landlords focus on the current RPZ expiry date on February 28th, 2026,” said REA spokesperson, Seamus Carthy.
“While no one wants to see landlords selling homes, the consequent softening of prices illustrates the corrective effect that even a modest increase in supply can have on the market in our towns.”
The REA survey also found that properties with a BER rating of A commanded an average 17 per cent premium over C-rated stock – reflecting the rising attractiveness of retrofitted homes.
The REA Average House Price Index concentrates on the sale price of Ireland's typical stock home, the three-bed semi, giving an accurate picture of the second-hand property market in towns and cities countrywide.
The actual selling price of a three-bed, semi-detached house across the country rose by 1.6 per cent in the past three months to €353,458, a 9.1 per cent overall rise annually.
The rate of increase in Dublin has more than halved in the past three months, with REA agents reporting a marked drop in viewings in the capital and homes now taking five weeks or more to reach a sale agreed.
Actual selling prices in Dublin city rose by 0.8 per cent in the last three months, down from 2.6 per cent in Q2. The average three-bed semi in Dublin’s postcode areas is now selling at €577,360, an 8.4 per cent annual rise of almost €45,000.
“Where agents in Dublin are used to having ten people viewing a property, it is now far fewer, and if a home is not priced competitively, it will not attract interest,” said Anthony McGee of REA McGee in Tallaght and Rathfarnham.
Helena Fitzgerald of REA Fitzgerald Chambers in Stoneybatter has attributed the current slowdown to a feeling of economic caution.
“There is a lot of financial uncertainty in the air, which seems to be affecting buyer confidence, and people are far more careful and slower to put a bid on a property,” said Ms Fitzgerald.
Selling prices in Ireland’s major cities outside Dublin rose by 2.2 per cent to an average of €368,492 – an 8 per cent annual increase.
Homes in the country’s large towns continue to show growth nationwide, 2.2 per cent this quarter and 10.7 per cent in the last September to an average of €269,199.
