The following is an extract from an opinion piece by Ken Macdonald, Managing Director of Hooke and MacDonald, originally published in The Irish Times.
The Numbers Don’t Lie: Ireland’s Housing Market Reality Check
Recent data reveals dramatic shifts in who’s buying Irish new homes:
Institutional Funders & Investors: Have withdrawn from funding new supply in the Irish rental sector.
State Backed Purchasers (Local Authorities, AHB’s, LDA): Significantly scaled up acquisitions of social & affordable housing.
Rental Supply: Facing unprecedented constraints caused by unfavourable development & investment environment.
Funding Shortfall: Multi-billion Euro funding gap, that can’t be filled by the taxpayer.
The data tells a clear story: Ireland is at a crossroads. The private rental sector needs sustainable funding, but the current environment & policies are not doing enough to foster this investment in new build housing.
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Source: The Irish Times Commercial Property, July 9, 2025