Rents in Mayo up 4.5% on this time last year

MARKET rents in Mayo were on average 4.5% higher in the third quarter of 2024 than a year previously.

The average listed rent is now €1,316 - up 80% from the level prevailing when the Covid-19 pandemic occurred.

Market rents in Connaught rose 7.7% year-on-year, down from an inflation rate of over 21% just over a year ago.

The ongoing increase in rents reflects very tight availability, with just over 200 homes available to rent on November 1 - down 22% year-on-year and less than half of the late 2010s average.

Nationwide, market rents rose by an average of 1.7% in the third quarter of 2024, according to the latest Rental Report by Daft.ie, marking the 15th consecutive quarter in which rents nationwide have increased. The average open-market rent nationwide in the third quarter of the year was €1,955 per month, up 7.2% year-on-year and 43% higher than before the outbreak of Covid-19.

After 18 months of improving availability, the number of homes available to rent on the open market is falling. On November 1, there were just over 2,400 homes available to rent across the country, down 14% on the same date a year previously and well below the 2015-2019 average of almost 4,400.

Commenting on the report, Ronan Lyons, Associate Professor in Economics at Trinity College Dublin, and author of the Daft.ie Report: "When thinking about boosting housing supply, owner-occupied homes and social housing have dominated policymaker attention over the last few years. The new government will have to address the lack of supply of private rental housing early in its term, if it is to bring about a change in conditions similar to what Dublin enjoyed in 2023 but across all rental markets.”

Average market rents, and year-on-year change, 2024 Q3:

Dublin: €2,476, up 5.2%

Cork city: €2,077, up 10.4%

Limerick city: €2,221, up 19.2%

Galway city: €2,189, up 10.5%

Waterford city: €1,639, up 5.8%

Rest of the country: €1,586, up 8.3%