DURING the boom, Hooke MacDonald was arguably the most prolific sales agents for new apartments. Unsurprisingly it has been less to the forefront in recent years but while apartments may be a hard sell, it appears they are easier to rent and Hooke MacDonald’s residential lettings department has apparently had one of its busiest years ever.

Nicola O’Callaghan, lettings manager, says demand is outweighing supply in many areas of Dublin “and not just for modern one and two-bedroom apartments but also three and four-bedroom homes. The summer months were busier than normal.”

The agency is currently providing tenancy management for receivers, banks, developers and investors – and maintains that a good portion of the 8,000 apartments controlled by Nama in Dublin are rented, leading to a falling supply of empty properties.