Property prices rise 3.8 per cent in Dublin and 6.7 per cent nationally in year to July

This article originally appeared in The Irish Times.

Property prices rise 3.8 per cent in Dublin and 6.7 per cent nationally in year to July

In the Dublin residential property market, prices increased by 3.8 per cent in the 12 months to July 2016.

Buying a house in Ranelagh, Rathmines, or Rathgar is likely to set purchasers back a hefty sum.

The Central Statistics Office’s new residential property price index, which includes information on cash purchases for the first time, shows huge disparity in prices throughout the capital.

Year-on-year price rise

In the Dublin residential property market, prices increased by 3.8 per cent in the 12 months to July. This compares with an increase of 2.5 per cent in the year to June and an increase of 4.5 per cent in the year to July 2015.

In the year to July, residential prices at a national level increased by 6.7 per cent.

During the month of July, property prices in Dublin increased by 1.6 per cent. This compares with an increase of 0.4 per cent in June and an increase of 0.4 per cent in July of last year.

Residential prices in the capital are now 58.2 per cent higher than their lowest level in April/May 2012, but remain 35.3 per cent below their peak price level in 2006.

Compared with property prices nationally, which fell 54.4 per cent from peak to trough, Dublin prices fell further, falling 59.1 per cent from high point to low point.

However, Dublin prices began to recover sooner and have recovered further than national prices. Currently Dublin prices are just 12.7 per cent less than their base value (January 2005), compared to 14.5 per cent nationally.

Dublin house prices increased 3.9 per cent in the 12 months to July 2016. This compares with an increase of 1.9 per cent in the year to June and an increase of 3.7 per cent in the year to July 2015.

The capital’s house prices are 60.4 per cent higher than their trough in February 2012. However, they are 32.8 per cent lower than their peak in April 2007.

The recovery was initially led by price increases in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown in 2012 and 2013. However, since late 2014 onwards, Dublin City has led the growth in house prices. In contrast, house prices in the Fingal area have been slowest to recover.

The price of apartments in Dublin increased 6.4 per cent in the year to July 2016. This compares with an increase of 8.7 per cent in the year to June and an increase of 11.9 per cent in the year to July 2015.

Dublin apartment prices are 68.9 per cent higher than their 2012 trough, but are 40.1 per cent lower than their peak in February 2007.

The strongest period of price growth for Dublin apartments (2013-2014) coincided with a period of substantial growth in the volume of sales. From 2015 onwards, volume growth has leveled off and price growth has been more hesitant.

The Irish Times: CSO figures show huge disparities in Dublin property prices

Wilson Moore Estate & Letting Agents

CSO figures show huge disparities in Dublin property prices

This article originally appeared in The Irish Times.

Property prices rise 3.8 per cent in Dublin and 6.7 per cent nationally in year to July

In the Dublin residential property market, prices increased by 3.8 per cent in the 12 months to July 2016.

Buying a house in Ranelagh, Rathmines, or Rathgar is likely to set purchasers back a hefty sum.

The Central Statistics Office’s new residential property price index, which includes information on cash purchases for the first time, shows huge disparity in prices throughout the capital.

Year-on-year price rise

In the Dublin residential property market, prices increased by 3.8 per cent in the 12 months to July. This compares with an increase of 2.5 per cent in the year to June and an increase of 4.5 per cent in the year to July 2015.

In the year to July, residential prices at a national level increased by 6.7 per cent.

During the month of July, property prices in Dublin increased by 1.6 per cent. This compares with an increase of 0.4 per cent in June and an increase of 0.4 per cent in July of last year.

Residential prices in the capital are now 58.2 per cent higher than their lowest level in April/May 2012, but remain 35.3 per cent below their peak price level in 2006.

Compared with property prices nationally, which fell 54.4 per cent from peak to trough, Dublin prices fell further, falling 59.1 per cent from high point to low point.

However, Dublin prices began to recover sooner and have recovered further than national prices. Currently Dublin prices are just 12.7 per cent less than their base value (January 2005), compared to 14.5 per cent nationally.

Dublin house prices increased 3.9 per cent in the 12 months to July 2016. This compares with an increase of 1.9 per cent in the year to June and an increase of 3.7 per cent in the year to July 2015.

The capital’s house prices are 60.4 per cent higher than their trough in February 2012. However, they are 32.8 per cent lower than their peak in April 2007.

The recovery was initially led by price increases in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown in 2012 and 2013. However, since late 2014 onwards, Dublin City has led the growth in house prices. In contrast, house prices in the Fingal area have been slowest to recover.

The price of apartments in Dublin increased 6.4 per cent in the year to July 2016. This compares with an increase of 8.7 per cent in the year to June and an increase of 11.9 per cent in the year to July 2015.

Dublin apartment prices are 68.9 per cent higher than their 2012 trough, but are 40.1 per cent lower than their peak in February 2007.

The strongest period of price growth for Dublin apartments (2013-2014) coincided with a period of substantial growth in the volume of sales. From 2015 onwards, volume growth has leveled off and price growth has been more hesitant.

The Irish Times: CSO figures show huge disparities in Dublin property prices

Wilson Moore Estate & Letting Agents

How demand for housing is 'a lot stronger than previously thought'

This article originally appeared in the Irish Independent.

Demand for housing is much stronger than previously thought, a new survey indicates.

KBC Bank Ireland’s Chief Economist Austin Hughes and Director of Product, Eddie Dillon launch KBC Bank’s new Home Buyer survey (Photo: Shane O'Neill Photography)

Pent-up demand for property is now so strong after the market’s collapse that up to a third of people are considering buying a new home.

The survey, commissioned by KBC Bank, found that 32pc of adults are contemplating buying a residential property in the next two years.

KBC Bank economist Austin Hughes accepted that the levels of pent-up demand found in the survey were “exceptionally large”.

This was especially the case as a normal level of transactions would see just 4pc of the housing stock changing hands.

But he said strong demand for housing reflected the fact the housing market here had not functioned for eight years.

“A large part of it is catch-up demand. It is not persistent demand. It is not something we will see for the next 20 years.”

Mr Hughes said the level of demand was much stronger than was commonly assumed.

Asked to put a number on it, he said: “You are probably looking at a couple of hundred thousand coming to the market.

A number of factors were driving people to consider buying – this includes new buyers, movers and those looking at investing in a buy-to-let property.

The stronger economic environment and greater confidence among consumers had meant thousands are considering buying. Jobs were more plentiful, and people needed to move because their personal circumstances had changed, such as having more children.

A nationally-representative sample of 2,000 people were interviewed by Ignite Research last month for the survey.

Mr Hughes said it was surprising that the survey found that almost half of those considering buying in the next two years were single and were looking at buying on their own.

This reflects that fact that more and more people live on their own, he said.

Irish Independent : How demand for housing is 'a lot stronger than previously thought'

Wilson Moore Estate & Letting Agents

'Repair and Lease' plan to pay owners €30,000 to put vacant homes in use

This article originally appeared in the Irish Independent.

Owners of vacant properties will be given up-front payments by the State in a scheme designed to bring thousands of homes back into use.

New scheme: Housing Minister Simon Coveney. Photo: Tom Burke

As much as €30,000 will be provided to bring properties up to a standard allowing them to be rented to social housing tenants or families in need of State support, before long-term leases of up to five years are agreed.

Housing Minister Simon Coveney said the Repair and Lease scheme would help alleviate short-term demand until delivery of new homes was ramped up.

He added that a pilot project was under way in Carlow and Waterford, and that both local authorities and Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs) could enter into arrangements with private landlords.

"It will be extended to AHBs, and they may be a more effective vehicle for delivery," he told the Irish Independent. "Local authorities might advertise in the paper seeking expressions of interest, but an AHB will go out and knock on doors and ask who owns property and see if they will accept three or five years' rent up front.

"That hands-on approach is needed. There's thousands (of vacant units) in urban areas and we need a scheme that brings a portion of those properties back into the market.

"It's much quicker than building a house or going through planning permission. The reason why I think this is important is we need a solution for the next two years while the overall housing stock increases. We need solutions for people today."

Census 2016 says there are some 200,000 vacant properties across the country, and the Department of Housing will begin compiling a register of vacant units when the final census figures are released later this year.

The Repair and Lease scheme is designed to make vacant private properties in need of renovation capable of being rented for social housing or to those in receipt of housing assistance payments (HAP).

In many cases, families may have inherited a property after a parent passed away but were reluctant to sell. These families would be given a portion of the rent up front to make necessary upgrades. The amount was likely to be around €15,000, but could rise to €30,000 if required, the minister said. Once expressions of interest were received, local authorities or AHBs would negotiate rents.

Some €1m is being provided over the coming months, with €2m next year. Based on average rents being demanded this year, at €929 per house, the allocation could fund delivery of more than 2,100 units.

"I'd see this as a really good response to short-term housing need but we need to show that the model works," Mr Coveney added. "It's a much cheaper way of getting housing than building or buying."

The property owner will have no role in managing the property, which will be handled by the local authority or AHB, which will also ensure it is maintained.

AHBs including Focus Ireland, the Peter McVerry Trust and Simon Community will be given resources to fund the works, and it is expected that much of the demand will be in the cities. However, vacant units in any area of need can be utilised.

The scheme is in addition to the Housing Agency's €70m budget to spend on vacant properties. It is negotiating with banks in relation to 1,600 vacant units linked to bad loans. The homes will be sold to councils and AHBs, allowing the fund to be continuously recycled.

Irish Independent: 'Repair and Lease' plan to pay owners €30,000 to put vacant homes in use

Wilson Moore Estate & Letting Agents

First-time buyers to get up to €10k tax back

This article originally appeared in the Irish Examiner.

First-time buyers are to get up to €10,000 in a tax rebate as part of Government plans to reheat the property market.

Housing Minister Simon Coveney said the grant would only be paid to those buying new homes and said the Help to Buy package, to be announced in the budget, would help tackle the housing crisis in Cork and Dublin.

It is unlikely that the State will take equity in homes under the buyer aid scheme, as operates in Britain.

However, property experts have warned the first-time buyers’ grant will simply drive up the price of new houses.

Mr Coveney, speaking at the close of the party’s pre-Dáil conference in Kildare, said the package would help kickstart the stalled property market. The grant will be targetted at purchasers buying homes valued at between €250,000 and €300,000.

However, statistics from estate agents Sherry FitzGerald show the average home price sale value is currently €400,000. Daft’s second quarter report put the national average asking price at €215,000.

“The majority, particulary in Dublin and Cork, are simply locked out of the market,” said Mr Coveney. “There aren’t houses being built for them and there aren’t houses being built at a price that they can afford. So we need to change that.”

Simon Coveney

He said the incentive scheme could see the reduction of house prices and improve the capacity of purchasers to buy homes.

“The mechanism for doing it is still being decided with the Department of Finance,” he said.

“I think it will be something of a first-time buyers grant, effectively through the tax system and through a tax rebate system.”

First-time buyers represented around 55% of the property market, he said.

Mr Coveney said a model in Britain was not favoured by the Government. There were problems there recouping financial aid, he said. Any incentive needed to help drive supply, he added.

Rebates for first-time buyers could be in the region of €10,000. This is similar to the Fianna Fáil manifesto which promised a mortgage deposit top-up scheme worth €10,000 per couple, or €5,000 for an individual.

The finance department o said the rebate could be a refund or tax credit for purchases. It would also be backdated to mid-July, when the housing plan was launched. No exact figure for buyers has yet been decided, a spokesman said.

Revenue and the department will also monitor closely the numbers drawing down the rebate and how it is affecting the housing market.

The grant will form part of taxation measures in the budget, set to come to €330m.

However, economist and Daft report author Ronan Lyons questioned the overall value of the grant for the housing market.

“It may not be viable to build, even after this,” he said. “It’s just free money that will get added to the price [of a house], but taxpayers will pick up the cost.”

The small amount would also not be a “gamechanger” for all buyers, he suggested, but could have an impact in areas such as Cork or Galway.

“The benefit of the overall number of builds has to outweigh the cost of the measure,” said Mr Lyons.

Mr Coveney will next week bring legislation to Cabinet to fast-track planning permission for large housing developments.

The scheme will see developments with 100 plus units going straight to An Bord Pleanála, rather than through local councils. Large developments could be fast-tracked within 16 weeks under the proposals.

Mr Coveney will be quizzed by TDs on his housing action plan at the Oireachtas housing committee today.

Crisis not over

-Eamon Quinn and Geoff Percival

The mortgage crisis has not gone away despite a fall in arrears cases, debt experts have warned.

Central Bank figures show the number of home loan accounts in arrears fell to 82,092 at the end of June, down from 98,155 a year earlier.

Mortgage arrears reached a peak in September 2013, when almost 13% of all accounts in the Republic were in arrears for over 90 days. That has now fallen to 7.8% of all accounts.

However, Paul Joyce, senior policy adviser at the Free Legal Advice Centres said banks are avoiding writing down mortgages.

“It has been presented that the arrears problem has been put to bed by restructuring,” said Mr Joyce. “It has not.”

Eugene McErlean, a banking expert who has advised Independent Alliance TDs on mortgage arrears, also said the number of arrears of over two years showed the scale of the problem.

Separately, the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council told the Oireachtas Committee on Budgetary Oversight that €4.1bn more needs to be put aside in the next five years to account for inflation.

Irish Examiner: First-time buyers to get up to €10k tax back

Wilson Moore Estate & Letting Agents

Revealed: the property hotspots that should be on house hunters’ radars

This article originally appeared in The Irish Independent.

Phibsborough in Dublin 7 has been named as Ireland's property hotspot.

The north city suburb has been judged as the area likely to see the most value added to average homes in the coming year.

That's according to a survey conducted by the Irish Independent in conjunction with a panel of three experts, all with access to a nationwide property network.

The new combined DIT colleges site set to open at Grangegorman and the pending arrival of the Luas are key factors.

The area's central location with a supply of undervalued, affordable homes and the presence of the Mater Hospital all combine to make it the area most likely to surge in the coming 12 months. Three-bedroom period terraces in the area are currently priced at about €395,000.

Coming in second place in the capital is the Ringsend/ South Docks area, thanks to a concentration of multinational employers such as Google, a dynamic architect designed modern landscape at the Canal Basin and a clutch of more affordable smaller homes with a Dublin 4 address. Other locations mentioned in Dublin include Harold's Cross, City West, Ashtown and Dún Laoghaire.

The survey also named Blackrock/Ballinlough as the ultimate property hotspot in Cork city, with affordable homes in high demand in the latter area in particular. Douglas/Rochestown came second on Leeside.

Meanwhile, Limerick's hottest location was judged to be the North Circular/ Ennis Road district where a tight supply of top-end homes are being sought by wealthy locals alongside successful individuals returning from years spent abroad. Renmore has been identified as Galway city's hottest property location.

The results of the survey are published in 'House Hunter 2016' - our definitive home buyers' guide free with today's newspaper.

Irish Independent: Revealed: the property hotspots that should be on house hunters’ radars

Wilson Moore Estate & Letting Agents