Record rent hikes in Munster driven by shortage of homes
In 236 The Homes Was In 2019 Highest 2006 The Average Now Munster Available Rent Its 750 Rent Province Since To Just — Felt Has Hikes With — Annual
Rents in Munster have jumped by 15.6% in the last year, with a home in Cork City now costing an average of €1,544 a month.
The latest report from property website Daft.ie has revealed rents have more than doubled across the country in the last decade.
With just 236 homes available to rent in Munster now — the average was 750 in 2019 — the province has felt its highest annual rent hikes since 2006.
In Cork City, rents have shot up by 6.9% in the last year to €1,544 on average. In the rest of Cork, the average now stands at €1,211, up 14.6% in 12 months.
On a standard two-bed house, rents are more than double the typical mortgage repayment.
Nationwide, rents are an average of 6.8% higher than a year ago, with the average now €1,516, more than double the low of €742 per month seen in late 2011.
Rents in Dublin are on average 2.7% higher than last year.
Across Munster, only Cork City (6.9%) and Limerick City (8.9%) saw year-on-year rent increases in single digits.
Kerry saw a year-on-year change of 19.2% while Clare had increases of 17.8%, with Waterford county up 15.9%.
The quarterly report found that rents rose in all nine rental markets of Munster between June and September, the fourth consecutive quarter this has happened.
“Covid-19 temporarily reshuffled Ireland’s rental problems but the latest figures confirm those problems of shortages are getting worse over time,” said report author Ronan Lyons.
“It is instructive that, even within that 1995-2020 period of rising rents, rents were largely stable 1999-2008 and no higher in 2012 than in 1997. Why? Lots of new rental homes were built in the 2000s,” said Mr Lyons.
"The empirical evidence is unambiguous: more rental homes makes rental housing more affordable.
"Without new homes, we will still be discussing unaffordable rents in five years."
Just 1,460 homes were available to rent across the country on November 1.
Dublin had just 829 homes available, the lowest ever recorded for the city in two decades.
The average rent in the capital for the third quarter of the year was €2,082.
Mr Lyons said the report shows what new tenants will be greeted with when entering the market.
“What this report covers is not the average rent paid by sitting tenants — who benefit from rent controls — but the average rent paid by new tenants, who invariably are not covered by such controls.
"While I can see the appeal of solving prices by simply making it illegal for prices to rise, it does nothing to address the reason why prices are rising — the lack of rental accommodation,” he said.