Rents in Munster rose 12.6% year-on-year, reflecting very low availability - with just 131 homes available to rent on May 1 - down over two thirds year-on-year.

In Kerry, rents were on average 15.4% higher in the first quarter of 2022 than a year previously. The average listed rent is now €1,125, up 101% from its lowest point.

Nationwide rents in the first quarter of 2022 were an average of 11.7% higher than the same period a year earlier, according to the latest Rental Report by daft.ie. The average market rent nationwide between January and March was €1,567 per month, up 2.8% on the last three months of 2021 and more than double the low of €765 per month seen in late 2011.

While there have been differences in regional trends in rents in recent quarters, the rate of increase was similar across all major regions between early 2021 and early 2022. In Dublin, market rents rose by 10.6% year-on-year, while in Cork and Galway cities, rents rose by 10.2% and 13.8%. Inflation was higher in Limerick and Waterford cities, at 15.5% and 16.2% respectively, while outside the cities the average increase was 12.7%

SCARCITY

The sharp increase in market rents around the country reflects a significant worsening in the record scarcity of rental homes. Nationwide, there were just 851 homes available to rent on May 1, down from over 3,600 a year ago and another new all-time low in a series that extends back over 15 years to 2006. The recent fall in homes to rent is seen in all regions of the country, with an 81% fall in availability in Dublin and a 66% fall elsewhere in the country. The report also includes an analysis of 72 multi-unit rental developments, which are estimated to have added at least 400 new rental homes in the last six months. Of these, it is estimated that 82% are already occupied, with occupancy in the wider multi-unit rental sector estimated to be 95% in early May, up from 93% six months ago.

The report also includes an estimate of the trend in rents for sitting tenants since 2010, as compared to new tenants paying market rates. While inflation in market rents is currently above 10%, and market rents have doubled over the past decade, ‘stayer’ rents have increased by just 1.5% over the past year and by less than 40% over the past 10 years.

“The latest figures confirm the overall strength of demand for rental accommodation in Ireland," Ronan Lyons, Associate Professor of Economics at Trinity College Dublin and author of the Daft Report, said.

"While strong demand for housing reflects underlying economic health, it becomes a challenge when there is inadequate supply to meet it. In Ireland’s case, the economy has suffered from an under-provision of new rental accommodation for over a decade. As a result, market rents have doubled and, as shown in this latest report, rental homes have become unbelievably scarce. New figures confirm that sitting tenants have experienced much smaller increases in rents – both during 2021 and over the last 10 years. Thus, the focus for policymakers must remain on creating the conditions for tens of thousands of new rental homes – market and social, all across the country – to be built over the coming years.”