Rents at lowest level for two years

RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY rents have fallen to their lowest level in two years as the number of properties available to rent has soared by 133 per cent over the past 12 months.

According to the latest Daft.ie rental report, for the third quarter of 2008, rents have hit their lowest level since August 2006, dropping by 3 per cent on average across the country in the past three months.

The stagnant property market means that many potential vendors have turned to renting rather than selling their properties. At the start of November there were over 18,000 properties available to rent nationwide, according to the survey, an increase of 133 per cent on the same period last year.

The price declines have been most keenly felt in three of Dublin’s commuter counties – Meath, Louth and Kildare – where rents have fallen by more than 5 per cent in the last 12 months.

Elsewhere, Cork and Galway cities have also seen significant decreases in rents, falling by 5.3 per cent and 4.1 per cent, respectively, while in Dublin the south and west county areas have lost almost 5 per cent in the last 12 months.

Rents in Dublin city centre and Limerick city fared the best in the survey, declining by just 1.1 per cent to € 1,200, and by 1.5 per cent to € 832, respectively.

According to Ronan Lyons, economist with Daft.ie, the current downturn in rents is closely related to ongoing uncertainty in the broader housing market.

“In the second half of 2007 rents were rising at double-digit rates as potential first-time buyers postponed buying as they saw house prices falling. Since then the rental market has been flooded by those properties that aren’t selling, reversing the trend of increasing rents.”