15th January (Issue 179)
Welcome to the Origin Capital Weekly Irish Property Review. This update is designed to provide you with a full recap of the latest property news from the media over the last seven days.
LICENCED PREMISES / HOTELS
Twilfit House, Dublin 1 Whitbread, owner of the Premier Inn Hotel chain have purchased Twilfit House development site in Dublin 1 and intends to build a 180-bed hotel on the site. This will be the second Premier Inn in Dublin following planning granted in 2018 for a 97-bed hotel on South Great George’s street, Dublin 2. The group are actively seeking both freehold and leasehold opportunities in Ireland to fulfil a requirement of 2,000 to 2,500 bedrooms in Dublin. The Irish Independent, 14th January
Parnell Street, Capel Street, Dublin 1 Brian McGettigan’s Vision Wave Ltd are seeking to construct a seven-storey, 65-bed hotel at Parnell Street and Capel Street. As part of the submission, Crowe commented that based on developer appetite and planning, 3,000 hotel rooms could be opened by 2023 in addition to the 699 rooms currently under construction. The Irish Times, 14th January
RESIDENTIAL / LAND
Thornton Hall, North County Dublin The majority of the 165 acre Thornton Hall site, located in North County Dublin, which was once designated to be the State’s first “super prison” has been offered to the Land Development Agency to build 150,000 homes over the next 20 years. The site was previously purchased by the government in 2005 for €32m (c€200k per acre) but was valued at €2.4m in 2015. The Irish Times, 14th January
Tallaght, Co Dublin The Marlet Property Group have applied for planning permission through the fast track system for 438 apartments and 403 student bed accommodation at the junction between Belgard Road and Belgard Square North. It is proposed this phase will be the first of two for “Belgard Gardens” which if approved, will see a total of 1,500 apartments, 403 student beds, commercial units along with communal lounges, gym, and meeting spaces on the 17.8 acre site. The site was assembled in 2016 for a reported €16m. The Irish Times, 9th January
Dulex Paint Factory Site, Drimnagh Durkan (Davitt Road) Ltd have applied for planning permission through the fast track system for 265 apartments on the site of the old Dulex Paint Factory site in Drimnagh, North Co Dublin. Davitt Road is a main route in Dublin City Centre beside the Grand Canal and the Luas red line. The Irish Times, 11th January
Ardarostig, Bishopstown, Cork Ardstone have applied through the fast track system for planning permission for 240 new housing units comprising 154 houses and 86 apartments at Ardarostig, Bishopstown, Cork. It is anticipated the project will cost c€50m. The Irish Times, 9th January
Castletownshed, West Cork Sales agent Charles P McCarthy in Skibbereen has brought “Seafield House” an 8,500 sq.ft. six bed house, with 300 yards of shoreline frontage with slipway and boathouse to market guiding €5m. The property is located in Castletownshed, West Cork. The Irish Examiner, 12th January
Fernbank Development, Churchtown Irish Life Investment Managers is seeking rents of c€2,350 for two bed apartments at the Fernbank development. The company paid c€128m for 261 apartments and one listed building on land previously owned by Notre Dame School, which marked their entrance into the build to rent schemes. Lisney are acting as rental agents for the units. The Irish Times, 14th January
OFFICE
Dublin Office Leasing surpassed all records in 2018 with 3,918,063 sq.ft. of space let in 2018 according to CBRE. The overall office vacancy rate in Dublin was just over 6%. The Irish Independent, 9th January
ESB Depot, South Lotts Road, Ringsend it has been reported that ESB may consider bringing their c9 acre site on South Lotts Road, Ringsend to the market. It is anticipated the sale would achieve c€150m and if completed, would be the largest by a semi-state body since RTÉ sold c9 acres of land at its Donnybrook campus to Cairn Homes for €107.5m. The property is located within walking distance of Google’s €300m Bolands Quay development which will include 301,389 sq.ft. of office space which Google will retain for its own use and 46 apartments. The Sunday Times, Irish Edition, 13th January
St Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2 The Royal College of Surgeons (RCSI) have applied to Dublin City Council to demolish part of the former Eir headquarters on St Stephen’s Green in Dublin 2 to allow for an 110,868 sq.ft. eight storey education and research building. This will be the first phase for the three blocks that comprise Ardilaun Centre. RCSI purchased the properties from Green Property in 2002 for €75m. Block A was let to Eir before they moved to Heuston South Quarter, RCSI occupy block B and Block C is let to Iconic Offices. The Sunday Times, Irish Edition, 13th January
RETAIL
Royal Liver Retail Park, Naas Road, Dublin has been sold to Allied Real Estate Group for c€25m. The Park was the first retail park to open in Ireland and tenants include Carpetright, Bargaintown and Furniture District. The Previous owner Willie Smyth, applied for redevelopment to a mixed use scheme including six blocks ranging from eight to 26 storeys in 2009. This plan was rejected by an Bord Pleanála. The new owner will examine asset management opportunities to increase the value of the retail pack. The Sunday Times, Irish Edition, 13th January
OTHER
Ulster Bank’s Construction Purchasing Manager’s Index (PMI) shows that the construction industry is expanding rapidly with the overall index hitting a four month high at 56.3 in December 2018 up from 55.5 in November. The commercial construction index was 58.5 in December up from 57.5. Housing activity growth reduced to 56 from 58.2. Civil Engineering activity index was 45.5. A reading higher than 50 indicates expanding activity. Jobs in the construction industry sector rose for the 64th consecutive month. The Irish Independent, 14th January
IAM Sold 2019 Auction Dates have been announced for more than 30 online and public auction dates. The property auctioneer runs Munster, Leinster and Connacht property auctions. The next auction dates for Connacht are 31st January (online) and 21st February (public), Munster 7th February (online) and 28th February (public) and Leinster 14th February (online) and 7th March (public). The Sunday Business Post, 13th January
Dublin Crane Count reached a record high of 109, up from 104 in December 2018. There are 41 cranes on the north side of the River Liffey and 68 on the south side. The Irish Times, 9th January
Irish Property Market Investment According to BNP Paribas, more than €3.6bn was invested in the Irish property market in 2018 with the office market the highest performer. It was also the fourth strongest year on record with 11 “mega deals” worth more than €100m. 4,008,922 sq.ft. of office space was taken up in Dublin, a 5.1% YoY increase on 2017. Residential investments totalling €1.1bn accounted for 31% of total turnover up from 15% the previous year. The Irish Times, 9th January
CBRE Real Estate Market Outlook 2019 discusses potential yield compression in 2019 for offices, prime build to rent, industrial and hotels. Office take up is expected to have another strong year but supply will be tight despite the amount of construction ongoing. Two sections of retail sheltered from structural change in consumer behaviour are “larger experiential retail schemes” offering leisure and food and secondly convenient local retail shops. Demand in industrial and logistics is expected to increase due to Brexit related demand and prime industrial rents are expected to increase by 6.5% as a result.
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