The supply of second-hand properties for sale in Ireland has fallen by almost a third since the pandemic, according to estate agent Sherry FitzGerald. The company also said it expects house prices to increase in value this year by 6-8 per cent.
In its latest analysis, the company said there just 12,785 second-hand properties listed for sale in July, equating to just 0.6 per cent of the State’s entire private housing stock.
This was 7 per cent down on the same month last year and 29 per cent below the level seen in the summer of 2020 at the height of the pandemic.
Sherry FitzGerald noted that while the number of second-hand properties listed for sale has increased slightly since the start of 2024, when a record low of 11,050 properties was recorded, this was only a “marginal improvement” and did little to alleviate the acute shortage of housing stock.
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It said the “severe scarcity” of homes to buy was aggravating affordability.
“The shortage of housing in the lower price categories is particularly alarming,” Sherry FitzGerald managing director Marian Finnegan said.
“In the sub-€200,000 range, the decline has been the most pronounced, with only 2,370 properties currently available nationwide, a staggering 63 per cent drop since 2020,” she said.
“Similarly, the availability of properties in the €200,000 to €350,000 price range has decreased by 38 per cent. This disproportionally affects individuals with single or lower incomes,” Ms Finnegan said.
Sherry FitzGerald’s report also sheds light on the geographic disparities in housing availability.
It noted that all four provinces have experienced substantial declines in housing stock since 2020. Ulster saw the largest reduction at 41 per cent, followed by Connacht with a 35 per cent decline, Munster with a 33 per cent drop, and Leinster, which recorded a 23 per cent reduction over the past four years.
Annual house price inflation, based on its own metrics, was running at 5.5 per cent for the 12 months to the end of June, up from 3.4 per cent at the same time last year.
In Dublin, it said the annual growth rate has risen to 5 per cent, a significant increase from the 2.4 per cent growth recorded in the previous 12 months.
Ms Finnegan said her expectation was that rising inflation levels “will persist given the low stock”. She said the company was expecting house prices to grow in value by 6-8 per cent in 2024.
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