Surge in new dwelling completions still ‘not enough’ to tackle housing shortage
Overall, six out of eight Irish regions saw a rise in completions, with a notable drop of almost 12% in the southwest and a 0.6% fall in the southeast regarded as particularly concerning.
Ireland’s housing supply continues to fall short of growing demand despite recent surges in the building of new homes.
New figures from the Central Statistics Office show that the number of new dwellings completed in the third quarter of 2023 rose by more than 14% compared to the same period last year, reflecting almost 8,500 new builds.
However, the Cork city and County Kerry region has seen a dramatic fall of almost 12% in new dwellings, with the sharp increase overall still falling short of Ireland’s annual housing targets which have been exacerbated due to a fall in existing homes on the market.
“We have gone from building 90,000 housing units per annum to less than 30,000, despite yearly housing targets of between 35,000 and 45,000,” said Ian Lawlor, Managing Director of residential and property group, Lotus Investment.
“The problem is compounded by the severe shortage of second-hand homes on the market, where volumes have reached a historic low.”
CSO figures show 3,627 scheme dwellings were completed in the last quarter, up 1.5% on an annual basis, while single dwellings fell by almost 5% in the same period.
Apartment completions increased by almost half in the past 12 months, increasing by more than 47% to 3,373, more than 80% of which were built in Dublin.
Overall, six out of eight Irish regions saw a rise in completions, with a notable drop of almost 12% in the southwest and a 0.6% fall in the southeast regarded as particularly concerning.
“While the increase in housing completions is encouraging, it is not enough,” says Trevor Grant, Chairperson of the Association of Irish Mortgage Advisors (AIMA).
“There is still huge demand for housing and not enough homes are being built to meet that demand.”
While new completions fell by almost 12% in Cork city and Kerry, Dublin saw growth of almost 37% in the same period, followed by the Midlands at just under 26% and the Midwest at almost 14%.
Planning delays have also leading to a severe death of shovel-ready sites, warns Mr Lawlor, adding that builders, starved of sites, are “bidding the site prices up, and this in turn is impacting viability, increasing risk, and negatively impacting delivery.”
“Unless we find a way to put more shovel-ready sites in the market, our lack of supply will continue to stunt housing growth and add to the housing crisis.”
