The average rent in Dublin city has now surpassed its previous peak reached in 2007, new figures from the Residential Tenancies Board rent index - compiled by the ESRI - show.
David Duffy, a senior researcher with the ESRI, said the report is based on actual rents paid rather than advertised rates. The good news for renters is that the rate of increase appears to be tapering off. "When you look at rents quarter on quarter, the rate of increase certainly appears to be slowing. In the first quarter, the annual rate of growth nationally was around 8.5%, down from just over 9% in the previous quarter.
"It's particularly noticeable in the Dublin market. Overall the picture is one of a slowdown, but at 8.5% rents are still growing strongly on an annualised level," Mr Duffy said said. He said that the reduction in the Dublin market was partly being driven by renters reaching the realms of affordability and moving outside of the capital to live.
"We produce an average rent dataset which shows that the rate of growth in commuter counties outside Dublin is quite strong, at about 10%, so people appear to have reached the limits of affordability and are moving outside and that's causing demand to increase there," he explained.
Mr Duffy said there were suggestions from the data that people were tending to stay in their properties rather than move and that was causing supply to dry up. "The number of new tenancies registered was slightly lower but overall tenancies were up, so that suggests people are staying in their rented accommodation. Mobility has slowed down and that's causing tightening supply. Properties aren't becoming vacant," he concluded.
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MORNING BRIEFS - The Institute of Professional Auctioneers and Valuers said that demand for rental properties in Dublin is increasing exponentially while supply is losing out proportionately. It said the only solution is to build. It pointed out that a perfect storm is forming in the most populous areas of the country with a growing population in a growing economy, increasing tourist numbers and innovations such as Airbnb. We have also had almost a decade when building of both public and private housing stalled, IPAV added.
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