22nd April (Issue 493)
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.
OFFICE
Two Grand Parade, Dublin 6 Union Investment has secured three new tenants for their 106,000 sq. ft platinum LEED, A3-rated office building which recently achieved practical completion. The property is located at Two Grand Parade in Dublin 6 on the banks of the Grand Canal and immediately adjacent to the Luas green line stop at Charlemont. FFH Management Services Limited, a global services provider within the Fairfax Financial Holdings Group, has taken 8,336 sq. ft on the fourth floor on a 15-year lease. KDB Ireland (Korea Development Bank) has taken 3,397 sq. ft on the penthouse on a 10-year term. Global management consultants McKinsey & Company took 5,000 sq. ft on a 10-year term on the fifth floor. The three companies join existing occupiers, Element Fleet Management and Clover Aviation. A range of office spaces, 5,185 sq. ft to 70,000 sq. ft, remain available at the scheme through joint letting agents CBRE and Cushman & Wakefield. The Irish Times, 16th April
La Touch House, Dublin 1 Axa Investment Managers Alts, part of the French insurance group, is set to lose millions on La Touche House in Dublin. The 107,639 sq. ft property, once valued at over €100m, is about to be placed on the market with property sources indicating that it could sell for less than €50m. The investor bought the building in 2020 for nearly €84m. The latest accounts for La Touche, the Luxembourg holding company for the block, show it was valued at €54m in 2023. The seven-storey property was built in 1992 and was one of the first office blocks built in the International Financial Services Centre. It was once the headquarters of Bank of Ireland, which sold it in 2002 for €82.5m to a group of investors. At the top of the property market in 2007 the building was valued at more than €100m. In 2022 Axa and BCP Capital applied for permission for a €50m redevelopment, which included partial demolition, the addition of three storeys and refitting the building to the Passivhaus energy efficiency standard. Planning permission was granted but the work did not go ahead. The Sunday Times, 20th April
Dublin Office Market Q1 2025 Colliers Report that 438,000 sq. ft transacted across 50 deals in Q1 2025. Average deal size rose to 8,750 sq. ft, up from 5,600 sq. ft in Q1 2024, well above the five-year average. EY expanded at Three Wilton Park with an additional 55,000 sq. ft. Apple secured 37,800 sq. ft at Four & Five Park Place and HSE leased 31,200 sq. ft at 110 Amiens Street. Vacancy is falling, now at 15.9%, dropping to 13.8% when reserved space is excluded. Grey space availability declined by 30% YoY, currently at 1.5m sq. ft. With less than 1m sq. ft of completions expected this year, further downward pressure on vacancy is likely. Prime headline rents remain steady at €60–€65 per sq. ft in the CBD. Colliers Q1 2025 Office Market Report
MIXED-USE
Eden Quay, Dublin 1 The Salvation Army, through selling agent North’s, has reduced the guide price which it was asking from €3.75m to €3.5m for Lefroy House, a mixed-use property at 12-14 Eden Quay, Dublin 1. Extending to 8,945 sq. ft over four storeys and a basement, the building is situated on the corner of Eden Quay with Marlborough Street and overlooks the River Liffey between O’Connell Bridge and Rosie Hackett Bridge. It is located opposite The Abbey Theatre. Lefroy House, which was formerly the Seamen’s Institute, provides a mix of good quality refurbished self-contained apartments and bedrooms, recreational spaces, dining area and offices across 36 rooms, plus 11 shower rooms and ladies and gents WC facilities. It was recently refurbished and is ready for occupation and income generation. The Irish Independent, 17th April
INDUSTRIAL
Logistics Confidence Index 2025 A global surge in demand for industrial and logistics facilities in Ireland, including distribution hubs, warehouses and storage facilities, accelerated from 2018 and 2019 onwards. The Irish market has an extremely low vacancy rate, just 2% in Dublin and a similar level in Cork. Over the last 10 years, take-up in the Dublin market has averaged nearly 3.3m sq. ft per annum. The current total of modern logistics stock in Dublin which CBRE track is approximately 42m sq. ft. Turnover of stock can range from 7.5% to 10% per annum. In 2024, annual take-up in Dublin fell by 50% to just under 1.6m sq. ft, the lowest level since 2011. There is strong demand evident across all unit sizes. Logistics and storage occupiers are the tenant group that account for the highest proportion of demand at 46% of all requirements. This is followed by light industrial occupiers at 20%. In the last 10 years, prime Dublin industrial and logistics property rents have more than doubled, with annual growth averaging over 8%. Assuming a unit size of 50,000 sq. ft, prime stock is defined as a property that has a 12-15 m eaves height, a minimum LEED ‘Silver’ accreditation, and is located in a prime M50 logistics park. In 2024, despite a slower leasing market, prime rents rose by 4% to €13.50 per sq. ft. CBRE are expecting strong rental growth in 2025 and are forecasting prime rents to grow to €14.50 per sq. ft in 2025. CBRE Kingspan Ireland Logistics Confidence Index 2025
HOSPITALITY
Clonskeagh, Dublin 14 An Bord Pleanála (ABP) has refused permission to turn a pub linked to development company Oakmount into a boutique hotel. Greenfield Ideas, a vehicle connected to Oakmount, bought Ashton’s pub, in Clonskeagh, Dublin for a reported €3m in 2022. In 2023, the company sought to demolish some of the building and construct a five-storey extension that contained a new pub, restaurant and 22 boutique hotel bedrooms. The application was met with concerns by locals regarding the height of the development and the fact that it would increase activity in the area. The council refused permission and Greenfield Ideas appealed to ABP in March 2024. In its decision to refuse permission, ABP said the location of the site in the River Dodder conservation area and proximity to residential dwellings would lead to “significant intensification” of existing use. The board said the new development would have a “detrimental impact on the residential amenities of existing residents” due to the levels of noise, disturbance and height of the building. The Business Post, 16th April
PURPOSE BUILT STUDENT ACCOMMODATION
Student Accommodation UK real estate giant Round Hill Capital has partnered with the property manager Fresh, which will oversee operations and marketing of its Irish student accommodation portfolio. It is the first time the companies have worked together, and the partnership will significantly expand Fresh’s presence in the Irish real estate industry. Since the contract was awarded, the property manager has onboarded 1,343 student beds across four assets in Cork and Dublin. The properties, which are Ardee Point in Dublin and Broga House, Curraheen Point and Ashlin House in Cork all offer a range of amenities including gyms, TV lounges, study rooms and games rooms. The Business Post, 16th April
RESIDENTIAL/DEVELOPMENT
Doneraile, Co. Cork DNG Ryan in Mallow, Co Cork, has brought a prime development land at Turnpike Cross in Doneraile to the market for sale and the price is on application. The 6.48 acre site has full planning permission granted for 40 homes, including 22 four-bed semi-detached houses, four three-bed semi-detached houses, ten two-bed semi-detached houses, and four elegant four-bed detached houses as well as generous open spaces and a dedicated children’s playground. The site is located within walking distance of Doneraile town and is also just five minutes from the N20, N72 and M8. The Business Post, 19th April
Macken and Pearse Streets, Dublin 2 A prominent site on a key south Dublin city thoroughfare is being offered for sale with planning permission for a live/workspace development. Once known as Boyne Forge, the 1,152 sq. ft site is located on the corner of Macken and Pearse streets. Selling agent Robert Colleran says he has had interest from potential purchasers willing to pay up to €1.2m and will look to call for best bids in three weeks. The ground floor is designed to accommodate a retail/office/showroom, or coffee dock, actively engaging the public realm from the streets. Upper floors benefit from permitted work/live use, offering the occupier maximum flexibility. The building core is strategically planned to support up to three separate tenancies on a floor-by-floor basis. The Irish Independent, 17th April
Sustainability Ratings on Private Rented Sector From 2018 to 2024, nearly €1bn was invested in the private rental apartment sector in Ireland, with 95% of this investment occurring in Dublin. This investment, in many cases, funded the construction of thousands of new apartments. Unlike other European cities, the institutional ownership of rental properties had not been a feature of the Dublin market prior to this point. Today, domestic, European and US investment funds own and operate a combined 34,000 units in the capital. According to CBRE’s research, the bulk of the private rental apartment buildings in the Dublin market do not have top-tier sustainability credentials under the BREEAM, LEED or WELL certification systems. CBRE estimates that 70% of all of the private rental apartment schemes built since 2020 (83 schemes in total) have no rating at all. CBRE see an opportunity for more landlords to protect and enhance the value of their assets by seeking to achieve a BREEAM In-Use ‘excellent’ credential on the buildings they currently own and operate. The Irish Times, 16th April
House Prices 3,245 dwellings were purchased in February, down 14% from January and 2.5% from February 2024. Still, home prices grew at an annualised rate of 8% from February 2024, down only slightly from an annual rate of 8.2% in the 12 months to January, according to the CSO’s latest residential property price index. House prices in the Republic are now 18.8% higher than they were in May 2007, the peak of the pre-crash property bubble. Dublin prices were 4.4% higher in February than at the height of the previous property boom. Property prices rose by 7.1% in February from the same month last year, down from a rate of 7.5% in January. Prices outside Dublin were up 8.7% year-on-year, down from 8.%. At €475,000, the Dublin region had the highest median property price in the Republic in the year to February, within which, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown had the highest median price at €670,000, while Fingal had the lowest at €450,000. Nationally, the median price of property in the 12 months to February was €360,000, up slightly from €359,999 in the year to January, the CSO said. The Irish Times, 16th April
OTHER
Ireland Investment and Funding Q1 2025 CBRE note that Q1 2025 saw a step change in activity in the Irish investment market, with a range of assets coming to market for sale across sectors and grades of buildings. Core-plus and opportunistic investors along with family offices are particularly active, but some pockets of core capital have also emerged. Investment spend in Q1 totalled almost €547m, 30% below the long-term Q1 average of nearly €785m, but a marked improvement on Q1 of last year when just €162m was recorded, a 12 year low at the time. Retail which accounted for 50%, attracted the most amount of capital for the fifth consecutive quarter. Just €10.6m was invested in the residential sector in Q1, with no sales of institutional-grade properties completing. CBRE, Q1 2025 Report
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