The level of investment in Ireland’s commercial property market proved to be relatively subdued in the first quarter of this year with a total of €443 million spent across 23 transactions.
The figures are contained in the latest quarterly investment report from agent Cushman & Wakefield. Commenting on the numbers, the report’s authors said they reflect a “measured start to the years as investors remained selective and disciplined following a period of heightened volatility”.
But while the value of the out-turn for the first three months of this year is 18.94 per cent lower than the €546.5 million invested in the first quarter of 2025, it is significantly higher (173.5 per cent) than the €162 million deployed by investors in the Irish commercial property market in the same period in 2024. That figure represented the lowest level of quarterly turnover in nearly a decade.
Iran’s cyber-attacks on Irish-based companies and the ongoing impact of conflict in the Middle East
The living sector proved to be the dominant contributor in the first three months of this year with the €212 million sale of the apartments at Newmarket Yards in Dublin 8 accounting for 55 per cent of investment volumes
READ MORE
The office sector ranked second in terms of investment volume, with some €113 million spent on a range of smaller and mid-sized assets.
The figure equates to 25.5 per cent of the money spent by investors in the first quarter. Included in the deals completed were Block R at Spencer Dock in Dublin’s north docklands, which the Office of Public Works (OPW) acquired for €23.6 million, the Hive in Sandyford Business District which was sold for €23.3 million 2 Ballsbridge Park which sold for €18 million.
Outside of Dublin, French investor Arkéa REIM paid about €16.3 million to secure ownership of Hawthorn House at Limerick’s Plassey Innovation Campus from Irish-owned real-estate investor and operator, Fine Grain Property.
The industrial sector accounted for approximately €41 million of investment, equating to approximately 9 per cent of total volumes. Most of this total was driven by the acquisition of a number of Dublin industrial units for a total of €33 million.
More modest volumes were recorded across the remaining sectors. Purpose-built student accommodation investment totalled €9 million, while retail transactions amounted to approximately €7.4 million.
Commenting on the numbers, Patrick Hogan of Cushman & Wakefield said: “First-quarter volumes reflected a selective investment environment amid a complex global backdrop. However, the renewed strength of living-sector investment clearly stands out.
“This is underpinned by Ireland’s compelling housing demand. With greater geopolitical stability, we would expect investor confidence to strengthen and capital deployment to accelerate through the remainder of 2026.”
