Rent prices in Galway City increased by more than 10% in the last year

Average rental prices in Galway City for the second quarter of this year has risen by 10% compared to the same three-month period last year, according to Daft.ie.

The latest quarterly rental report by the property website shows that the average rent in Galway City was now €818 for the three month period from April to June, up 10.1% compared to last year, the second biggest rise in Ireland’s five main cities. In the rest of Galway, rents were on average 8.7% higher in the second quarter of 2015 than a year previously. The average advertised rent is now €590, up 16% from their lowest point in 2013.

Only Cork showed a bigger percentage increase, with rental prices for Q2 standing at €889, a rise of 10.4% on the same period last year. Dublin, Limerick and Waterford all recorded increases as well, with the average rent in Dublin standing at €1,368 (up 8.5%); Limerick came in at €718 (up 8.9%) and Waterford at €629 (up 8.2%).

In Connacht, rents rose by an average of 6.5% in the year to June 2015, compared to stable rents a year previously. In Galway City, rents have risen by 10.1% in the last year and the average rent is now €818.

Year-on-year inflation in rents eased back slightly between March and June but remains high at 8.6% nationwide. The national average rent between April and June was €934, compared to €860 a year previously. Inflation in rents peaked in late 2014, at 10.7%.

As in recent months, the slight slow-down in rental inflation nationally is being driven by trends in Dublin, where rent inflation has eased from 15% to 8.5% in the last 12 months. This means that, for the first time in this market cycle, rental inflation outside Dublin – at 8.7% – is greater than in Dublin.

The stock available to rent remains extraordinarily tight. Just 4,600 properties were available to rent nationwide on August 1st, 2015, compared to 6,800 on the same day a year previously. By comparison, on August 1st 2009, there were over 23,000 properties available to rent nationwide. Supply in the Dublin market has now been tight for nearly three years, with fewer than 2,000 properties on the market on average since late 2012.

“As students prepare for entering higher education, or returning from their summer break, they will find conditions every bit as tight as a year ago in Dublin – and in some places in the country even tighter,” said Ronan Lyons, an economist at TCD and author of the Daft.ie report.

“This reflects a continuing lack of construction at a time when the population is growing. In addition to addressing high construction costs, which are impeding all forms of supply, policymakers also need to examine whether accommodation specifically designed for students suffers from additional barriers to supply.”

The full report is available from www.daft.ie/report.