24th February (Issue 533)
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.
ORIGIN CAPITAL KVIKA FUNDING PARTNERSHIP
New Funding Partnership Origin Capital is proud to announce a strategic relationship with Kvika banki hf. This partnership allows Origin Capital to provide flexibly structured senior debt in the €2m – €15m range to Irish borrowers, backed by Kvika’s institutional capital base. With over €30m already deployed within this relationship, Origin Capital is scaling its lending activity and delivering certainty of execution for core and transitional assets. For further information please contact Ross Metcalfe at rossmetcalfe@origincapital.ie Origin Capital Press Release, 12th February
HOSPITALITY
Dun Laoghaire, Co Dublin Plans for a proposed 71-bed REZz hotel in Dún Laoghaire have been appealed to An Coimisiún Pleanála (“ACP”) by the owners of the apartment residences within the complex where it would be located. Last week, Century Court Residences lodged an appeal against the proposed development from Downton Ventures Limited. Downton Ventures had been granted permission for change of use for the first, second and third floors of blocks A and B in the complex, as well as the second and third floors of blocks C and D, from office space to hotel accommodation. The case is due to be decided by ACP by June 18th. The Business Post, 20th February
RETAIL
Charleville, Co. Cork Sherry FitzGerald is guiding €1m (16.3% NIY) for a high-yielding North Cork pharmacy investment generating annual rental income of €180,000. The 3,165 sq. ft property is located in Charleville Shopping Centre, which is also up for sale. The property is occupied by McCabes Pharmacy, who have seven and a half years left to run on a 25-year full repairing and insuring lease from October 2008. The lease structure includes upwards-only rent reviews. Sherry FitzGerald is also handling the sale of the shopping centre, which went to market last September with a guide of €3.5m. The Irish Examiner, 19th February
North Main Street, Cork City Joint agents Cushman & Wakefield and Behan, Irwin & Gosling are guiding €1.2m for the Cummins Sports flagship Cork City premises on North Main Street. The store is also available for lease, for an annual rent of €100,000 per annum. The property includes a large open-plan ground floor retail unit of approximately 4,054 sq. ft, with strong street presence and impressive ceiling heights of 3.86m, while the 3,941 sq. ft first floor has recently been used for storage, and features solid concrete floors, canteen and toilet facilities, and convenient access via a rear stairwell. It has the bonus of a large yard to the rear, accessed via Cornmarket St, with parking for approximately 14 cars. The Irish Examiner, 18th February
Coolock, Dublin 17 Northside Shopping Centre in Coolock is entering a new phase of leasing activity following the completion of two significant deals with Tesco and Danish retail chain, Normal. The Dublin centre, owned by German investor AM Alpha, has agreed terms with Tesco for the former SuperValu unit, extending to approx. 23,573 sq. ft. Refurbishment works are due to commence this month, with the supermarket expected to open in early summer. The addition of a grocery anchor is expected to reinforce the centre’s convenience offer and daily footfall. In parallel, AM Alpha has secured Normal for the former Iceland unit, comprising some 7,535 sq. ft. Savills and Agar are joint letting agents on the scheme. TWM assists AM Alpha locally with asset management. The Business Post, 20th February
OFFICE
OpenAI Office Space, Dublin OpenAI looks set to grow its Dublin-based workforce significantly, with a plan to move into a new EU headquarters office capable of accommodating over 400 workers. The ChatGPT creator is understood to have narrowed its search for some 45,000 sq. ft of office space down to two potential locations in Dublin’s city centre and south docklands. The first of these is College Square, the landmark office scheme developed by Marlet Property Group in Dublin city centre, while the other is the Tropical Fruit Warehouse, developed by Iput on Sir John Rogerson’s Quay. The Irish Times, 18th February
Greystones Harbour A long-vacant space at Greystones Harbour will be converted into offices. An application to Wicklow County Council submitted at the end of 2025 by BJ Marinas Ltd, sought permission to change the first and second floors of the three-storey pier-side building from restaurant use to office space. The council also agreed to allow the retention of several as-built modifications to the structure, including glass balustrades in place of previously approved metal railings and a perforated aluminium façade depicting an image of Wicklow Head Lighthouse. Planners concluded these features “enhance the existing structure” and would not negatively affect visual or residential amenities. No third-party submissions were lodged. The Irish Independent, 18th February
IPUT Real Estate has raised €175m for new equity in the company from CBRE Investment Management indirect strategies. The funds will be used to grow IPUT’s Dublin office portfolio. IPUT has a ready-to-go development pipeline with the capacity to accommodate more than €500m of investment, all of which is part of its ambition to expand its Class A+ office portfolio. That portfolio comprises 30 assets of more than 2m sq. ft, all of which are located in Dublin’s city centre. These in turn are part of a much bigger portfolio, which includes logistics, industrial and retail properties and which is valued in total at €2.7bn. In addition, IPUT intends to commence development of its 350,000 sq. ft city centre office pipeline, which comprises two city centre landmark office sites at Earlsfort Terrace and Harcourt Street. The Irish Independent, 19th February
PURPOSE BUILT STUDENT ACCOMMODATION
Student Bed Deficit Limited development of purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) has led to a deficit of around 38,900 bed spaces in Dublin, Cork, Limerick and Galway, according to Sherry FitzGerald. By year end 2025, PBSA bed spaces in Ireland totalled 47,600, while 2,600 PBSA beds were under construction, full time third-level students were 215,585. Dublin has a student-to-bed ratio of 2.7 and in Cork, Limerick and Galway ratios range from 1.3 to 2.5. Construction and borrowing costs, along with uncertainty and reduced development activity, impact the viability of PBSA developments. Supply and demand issues are putting pressure on the private rental market. Planning permission had been granted for around 13,800 PBSA beds, but c. 4,800 had been put on hold. Sherry FitzGerald estimated demand for additional bed spaces in Dublin, Limerick, Cork and Galway, could increase by between 9,900 and 11,700 by 2030. The Business Post, 18th February
RESIDENTIAL/DEVELOPMENT
Naas, Co. Kildare Palm Logistics has reached practical completion of four new high-bay and light-industrial units at Momentum Logistics Park. The units, which together extend to a total area of 122,000 sq. ft, have all been placed under offer. Palm Logistics has also secured planning permission for a further 400,000 sq. ft of high-bay logistics space at the park, with several new buildings already under construction and additional phases totalling 200,000 sq. ft due to go for planning approval this year. Momentum Logistics Park, known originally as Naas Enterprise Park, sits on more than 250 acres, was acquired by Palm Capital and KKR in 2021 as part of their wider €195m purchase of the Core industrial portfolio. Since then, Palm Logistics has been involved in a €100m regeneration programme. The master plan for Momentum Logistics Park includes the development of more than 850,000 sq. ft of logistics and warehousing space across seven zoned sites, offering occupiers the opportunity to secure flexible, custom-built grade-A accommodation ranging in size from 8,000 sq. ft to 500,000 sq. ft. The Irish Times, 11th February
Dublin Industrial and Logistics Review A strong recovery in Dublin industrial and logistics showed in 2025, with take-up rising sharply and prime rents increasing, according to Savills Ireland’s Dublin Industrial and Logistics Review. Total take-up reached 2.39m sq. ft across 70 deals in 2025, an increase of 81% on the previous year, although still 10% below the five-year average. Activity accelerated in the final quarter of the year, with 782,000 sq. ft transacted across 24 deals, the highest number of transactions recorded in a single quarter since Q3 2022. Supply also increased with completions totalling 1.48m sq. ft in 2025, well above the five-year average, driven by speculative development and a catch-up in delivery following limited construction during the previous cycle. As a result, the vacancy rate edged up from 1.7% to 2.5%. Prime rents rose by €1 psf over the year to €14 psf, reflecting strong demand for best-in-class units. Newly constructed and refurbished units under 30,000 sq. ft achieved rents of up to €20 psf, highlighting the pricing power of high-quality stock amid rising construction costs. Third-party logistics operators re-emerged as the dominant source of demand almost tripling take-up from 13% in 2024 to 37% in 2025. The Irish Independent, 12th February
RESIDENTIAL/DEVELOPMENT
Pembroke Street, Dublin 2 Knight Frank is guiding €15.5m for Alexander Court, a private rented sector investment, in a prime location on Dublin’s Upper Pembroke Street. The property, a mid-terrace five-storey over basement building comprises 23 apartments complemented by a range of on-site amenities. The property was acquired by the current owner for approx. €6.3m in late 2015 and redeveloped as 18 two-bedroom and five three-bedroom apartments, along with a residents’ lounge, a roof terrace, and secure bike storage. The building was operating as a boutique “curated living” 51-bed residence but is now marketed for sale as a portfolio of 23 individual apartments aimed towards the upper end of Dublin’s private rented sector market. The investment comes for sale with a low vacancy rate, an on-site management team in place, and with immediate gross rental income of €1m a year. The Irish Times, 18th February
Killester, Dublin 3 Hooke & MacDonald is guiding €3.45m for a 0.59 acre site with full planning permission for the development of a scheme of 38 apartments in Killester village. Located on a prominent corner in the heart of the village, the subject site at 174 Howth Road is occupied at present by a large, detached house known as Inglewood. The property comes for sale with planning permission from ACP for demolition of the existing structure and its replacement with 38 apartments distributed across a single block rising in height from three to five storeys over basement level. The approved scheme allows for a mix of one studio apartment, 11 one-bedroom and 26 two-bedroom apartments ranging in size from 861 sq. ft to 1,152 sq. ft. Several units will feature external areas of up to 344 sq. ft. The Irish Times, 18th February
Brannockstown, Co. Kildare Jordan auctioneers are guiding €1.4m for 10 acres within the village boundary of Brannockstown near Kilcullen. It is zoned Settlement Expansion under the Kildare County Development Plan. The agent says that this would allow for a development of relatively large detached houses on their own half acres similar to those on the adjoining Grangemore Manor. It comes with a detached three-bedroom bungalow extending to 1,468 sq. ft. The site is close to Brannockstown National School and church while the village is 11km south of Naas and 11km south-east of Newbridge. As well as being convenient to the M7 and M9, rail services are available from Newbridge and Sallins. The Irish Independent, 19th February
Carrickmines, Dublin 18 Cairn Homes has been given the green light by Dublin City Council for the development of 144 residential units in Ashwood Farm in Carrickmines. The proposed development comprises a six-storey apartment block with 70 apartments, split 50/50 as one and two bed units along with 16 duplex units, three storeys in height, as well as 36 three-bed houses, and 22 four-bed houses. The c.6.9 acre site is on Glenmuck Road, 1.5km west of the M50. The developer was previously denied planning permission by ACP for development on the site, after it sought to develop 305 new housing units, which consisted of 289 build-to-rent apartments and 16 houses. The Business Post, 19th February
Residential Property Prices for both new and existing properties were up by 7% in the year to last December, according to the Central Statistics Office property price index. Prices in Dublin rose by 5.6% and prices outside Dublin were up by 8.1% in December 2025 YoY. Prices of second-hand properties are rising faster than the cost of new homes and both were up 10.6% and 5.3% respectively in 2025. Across all housing types in the State, the median price of a dwelling purchased in the 12 months to last December was €387k. €680k in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown was the highest median price compared to the lowest median price of €195k in Donegal. In December 2025, 5,947 dwelling purchases by households were filed with the Revenue at a total value of €2.6bn. These purchases consisted of 4,001 existing dwellings and 1,946 new dwellings. The Irish Independent, 18th February
Dublin Housing Sites Kennedy Wilson is closing in on a deal to take a participating interest in the development of three of Dublin’s largest housing sites. The Sunday Times understands the company is in advanced talks with APG Asset Management about participating in a joint venture to develop the Holy Cross College site in Drumcondra, the former Player Wills and Bailey Gibson sites off the South Circular Road, and the Cherrywood development in Dublin. The three sites have the capacity for thousands of homes. APG entered a joint venture with Hines on the three sites in 2018. The developments will involve the investment of over €1.3bn. Headquartered in Heerlen in the Netherlands, APG is one of the world’s largest pension investors, with about €590bn in assets under management. Last week, Kennedy Wilson announced that it would go private, after agreeing to be acquired by a consortium led by its chief executive William McMorrow and Fairfax Financial in a deal valued at about €1.27bn. The Times, 21st February
OTHER
JLL Irish Property Index The Q4 2025 JLL Irish Property Index showed the office sector booked a seventh-consecutive quarter of positive growth as overall returns rose 9.4% YoY, the biggest spike since 2018, and 2.8% increase in rental values. The institutional investment portfolio monitored was valued at €620m, which included €316m of office space. Retail capital values grew by 7.8% over the year, which made it the strongest performing asset class. This sector was also the most active investment sub-sector in 2025, accounting for a third of investment volumes and registered the largest estimated rental value growth, up 11.6% in the year due to “strong retail park lettings”. Value of industrial property rose by 4.7% over the year, with the increase linked to supply shortages, while estimated rental values were up 3.1%. The Business Post, 18th February
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