THE AVERAGE COST of renting in Ireland grew by 6.4% in the 12 months to the final quarter of 2017.
According to the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB), in October to December 2017 the standardised national average rent for new tenancies was €1,054 per month, up from €990 one year earlier.
In percentage terms, nationally rents grew by 6.4% over the year to this period, which brings the growth rate down to levels seen in early 2017. This represents a slowdown relative to the third quarter of 2017, when the growth rate was 8%.
The RTB’s report is produced in conjunction with the Economic and Social Research Institute and is based on the rents being paid in over 17,700 new tenancies registered with the RTB during the quarter in question.
Rents in Dublin continue to increase, with an average rent of €1,511 (up from €1,436 one year earlier). The annual growth rate of rent in Dublin stood at 5.2%, which represents a decline from 8% in the third quarter of 2017.
The annual growth rate for Dublin is the lowest it has been since 2013. From the third quarter to the fourth quarter in 2017, rents increased from €1,494 to €1,511. However, the quarterly growth rate also slowed from 2.3% in the third quarter to 1.1% in the fourth quarter.
In the Greater Dublin Area (GDA, excluding Dublin) standardised average rent stood at €1,103 (compared to €1,026 year on year). This area has shown an increased growth rate from 4.8% in the third quarter of 2017 to 7.5%, the highest since the fourth quarter in 2016.
Outside the GDA, the average rent was €793 – up from €740 year on year. Rents were up 7.1%, which is a small decrease from 7.9% in the third quarter of 2017.
Some other key points in today’s report include:
Unsurprisingly, rents are highest in cities, but growth rates are mixed: Cork (5.2%) and Dublin (5.9%) had lower annualised growth rates than Galway (8.5%), Limerick (10%), and Waterford (7.4%) in Q4 2017.
People being priced out of Dublin
Commenting on the report, RTB Director Rosalind Carroll said: “Within the figures published today we can see some sense of the pressure on rents in Dublin rippling out to the wider GDA, while outside the GDA new rents actually fell in Q4.
“It is worth noting that the Rent Index is based on new tenancies registered and therefore does not reflect what is happening within existing tenancies.”
Carroll added that some of the new tenancies will be properties new to the rental market (ie not let in the previous 24 months), meaning they are exempt from the 4% rent restrictions of the Rent Pressure Zones.
Speaking about the figures, Pat Davitt, CEO of the Institute of Professional Auctioneers & Valuers, said the supply of properties is increasing “far too slowly”.
“When one looks at the various geographical areas, what it appears to be saying is some people are being priced out of the Dublin area.
“In the Greater Dublin Area … including commuter counties Meath Wicklow and Kildare, growth has jumped from 4.8% in Q3 to 7.5% in Q4,” Davitt said.
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