25th March (Issue 489)
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.
INDUSTRIAL
Greater Dublin Area The Arc portfolio, guiding €30m through Harvey, comprises 11 income-generating industrial properties positioned along the M50 motorway from Bray to Swords. The portfolio has a current annual rent roll of €1.84m (5.6% NIY) and a WAULT of five years to the earliest termination. The sale process is being conducted on behalf of receivers Interpath, and form part of a wider disposal of 27 properties. The largest asset within the portfolio is the Honda Distributors building in Ballymount comprising 58,739 sq. ft. Other significant assets include the Ardmore Film Factory in Bray (45,234 sq. ft) and Unit 10 in Rosemount (34,562 sq. ft). The Irish Times, 19th March
Nenagh, Co. Tipperary Agent Colliers is guiding €7.5m for a large headquarter warehouse facility on a 7.46-acre site. Located at Stereame Business Park, the property extends to 104,700 sq. ft and comprises the warehouse, three floors of offices and a separate showroom. There is also a two-storey mezzanine with an additional 12,959 sq. ft. The property is held under two separate leases, both 10 years from January 2021 and a total passing rent of €400,000. There is a landlord/tenant break option in December 2025. The Irish Times, 19th March
OFFICE
One Spencer Dock, Dublin 1 The Dublin headquarters of PwC, is set to hit the market with the high-profile office expected to guide for in the region of €200m. The prime 226,624 sq. ft property is expected to draw significant interest from a wide range of potential buyers, with core institutional investors expected to find the property attractive. PwC signed a 25-year lease in April 2007 that expires in April 2032. In August 2016, the current owners bought the property for €242m through London-based AGC Equity Partners. The Sunday Independent, 23rd March
RETAIL
Retail Parks The Parks Collection, which comprises Belgard Retail Park in Tallaght, the M1 Retail Park in Drogheda and Poppyfield Retail Park in Clonmel is being readied for a sale in the coming weeks by Cushman & Wakefield. The portfolio is expected to guide approx. €120m, or some €42m more than the €78m Marlet paid US investor Marathon AM in September 2021. Since then, Marlet has engaged in an intensive asset management programme. In the case of Belgard Retail Park, the developer built a new unit of 25,155 sq. ft which EZ Living has agreed to occupy on a new long-term lease. At M1 Retail Park, work is at an advanced stage on the construction of a new Tesco supermarket of more than 45,000 sq. ft. The overall rent roll, meanwhile, has been increased from €7m to over €9m. The Irish Times, 18th March
McDonald’s Two drive-through restaurant premises in Shannon and Cavan, occupied by McDonald’s restaurants, are guiding at €1.2m and €1.8m respectively through Bannon. The drive-through in Shannon is located directly opposite Shannon Town Centre and extends to a gross internal area of 3,332 sq. ft. McDonald’s recently agreed a new lease providing the purchaser with almost 13 years term certain at a passing rent of €82,533. The McDonald’s in Cavan is located at Pullamore Business Park. That sale also includes two workshop style units, which are leased respectively to the National Car Testing service and to a veterinary practice. The McDonald’s drive-through restaurant is let for another 15.5 years and is generating annual rental income of €90,304. The NCT centre and veterinary practice are paying a combined €48,690 in annual rental income. The Irish Times, 19th March
HOSPITALITY
Kinsale, Co. Cork Ballinacurra House Estate has been relaunched on the market with a reduced guide price, as well as the addition of a six-bedroom house to the lot. Colliers, under the instruction of Crowe as receiver, is guiding €3.75m which is a reduction on previous guide of €6.35m in 2021 and subsequently of €4m. Set across 23 acres of private gardens, woodlands and paddocks, just a few km upriver and west of Kinsale, its 18, 400 sq. ft Georgian manor house has 14 ensuite bedrooms. The Irish Independent, 20th March
Dalkey, Co. Dublin BDM Property and John Younge are guiding offers in excess of €2.5m for the Dalkey Duck. The accommodation comprises a ground-floor bar and lounge bar, plus a fully fitted catering kitchen. Overhead, an apartment includes a large living room and two double ensuite bedrooms. Outside to the rear, a large and covered patio and beer garden. The property also benefits from planning permission for 12 guest bedrooms. The Irish Independent, 20th March
Dunshaughlin, Co Meath An Sibín pub is guiding a price of more than €1.75m through Lisney. An Sibín is being sold on the instructions of joint liquidators KPMG and Interpath. The detached two-storey building comprises approx. 4,000 sq. ft ground floor lounge bar and dining space supported by a kitchen. First-floor accommodation extends to approx. 3,560 sq. ft and includes a function lounge, toilets and an additional kitchen. The property sits on a 0.47-acre site and it comes with parking for 45 cars. The Irish Independent, 20th March
Baggot Street, Dublin 2 Eamon Waters has withdrawn his appeal with An Bord Pleanala (“ABP”) through which he was seeking to overturn DCC’s decision to refuse plans for a hotel. Peachbeach Unlimited had applied to replace the building at 15-16 Baggot Street Lower with a six-storey hotel and apartment complex. Peachbeach Unlimited had bought the property for an estimated €12m. It is currently let to Tesco Ireland and the upper floors are sublet to Flyefit gym. The plans were rejected by the council last September. The local authority found that the modern design of the hotel would be “inappropriate in terms of the proposed height and scale.” The Currency, 21st March
MIXED-USE
Dublin 8 The recently refurbished 30-31 Francis Street and 1-4 Swifts Alley are guiding €6.5m (NIY of 7%) through Quantum Property. 30-31 Francis Street is a 4 storey over basement dual aspect terraced building of approx. 6,400 sq. ft and multi tenanted generating €175k pa of rent. 1-4 Swifts Alley is approx. 8,900 sq. ft and generating €300k pa in rent from Berlitz Dublin Language Centre. There are 12 basement car park spaces included in the sale. Quantum Property Consultants, 24th March
Commercial Vacancy Rates The commercial vacancy rate in Ireland reached 14.5% in Q4. According to the latest GeoDirectory Commercial Buildings Report, prepared by EY, Sligo had the highest rate, at 20.6% with Carrigaline, Co Cork the lowest at 5.1%. D2 had the highest vacancy rate in the capital, at 18.7%. There are now 30,635 empty commercial units across the country. The total stock stands at 210,894 commercial properties, an increase of 74 units compared to the previous year. The services sector occupies the largest share, at just under half. Retail and wholesale have the second-largest share of commercial sites, at 22% of the total. The Irish Independent, 20th March
RESIDENTIAL/DEVELOPMENT
Finglas, Dublin 11 The former Bottom of the Hill pub in Finglas village, which sits on a 0.49 acre site, is being offered to the market with full planning permission for an apartment scheme through Lisney at a guide price of €2.25m. The plan approved by ABP provides for a five-storey, mixed-use development that includes 48 apartments (three three-beds, 31 two-beds and 14 one-beds), a hospitality unit and a retail unit. The Irish Times, 19th March
Shannon, Co. Clare Sherry FitzGerald are quoting a price of €3.25m for a prime commercial development site immediately adjacent to Smithstown Industrial Estate and the Shannon Airport Group’s Shannon Campus East Zone. Extending to a total area of 10.61 acres, the lands are zoned “Light Industry”. The Shannon Airport Group’s Shannon Campus West and East Zone comprises a 242-hectare (600-acre) business park that is home to more than 300 companies and 8,000 employees. The Irish Times, 19th March
Blackrock Road, Cork ABP has given the green light for a new residential development in Cork City. Dwellings Developments Blackrock Road Ltd got approval from Cork City Council in April last year for the construction of two new apartment blocks at Ashton Place and Ashton Rock on Blackrock Road, ranging from five to six storeys in height, containing 44 apartments in total. The decision was appealed to ABP following several objections from local residents, however ABP upheld the council’s decision. The Examiner, 20th March
Ballybunion, Co. Kerry Developers AGC Ventures Ltd T/A Atlantic Golf Construction has sought permission from Kerry County Council for the construction of 27 homes at Church Road, Ballybunion. The proposed development would comprise six one-bed homes, two two-bed homes, 15 three-bed homes and four four-bed homes, with new connections to the public foul, surface water and water mains with all necessary ancillary services at Church Road. The Examiner, 20th March
Residential Property Prices increased by 8.1% in the 12 months to January 2025, down from 8.8% in the year to December 2024. In Dublin, residential property prices rose by 7.5% compared to January 2024. The highest median price for a dwelling in the 12 months to January 2025 was €662,349 in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown, while the lowest median price was €180,000 in Leitrim. Meanwhile, the median price of a dwelling purchased was €359,999. The region outside of Dublin that saw the largest growth in house prices was the border (Cavan, Donegal, Leitrim, Monaghan, and Sligo) at 12.7%, while at the other end of the scale, the Mid-East (Kildare, Louth, Meath, and Wicklow) saw a 5.8% rise. The Business Post, 19th March
Development Land deals totalled €749m in 2024 across 84 deals, an increase of 45% on 2023 and was 15% higher than the five-year average of €654m. Dublin accounted for 79% of transaction volumes, which was in line with the five-year average. The Greater Dublin Area took that share to 88%, highlighting the sustained attraction of the capital to both residential and commercial developers. Notably, Louth experienced its strongest year in the series with over €25m in transactions. Planning permission continues to demand a premium in the market; the average price for a site with planning was €11m, compared to just €7m for sites without. Savills Report, 20th March
Planning Legal Challenges Legal challenges to major housing, renewable energy and infrastructure projects dramatically spiked last year causing major delays. New figures from ABP show a 67% surge in judicial reviews as it faced 144 proceedings, a rise on the 86 challenges registered in 2023. Industry leaders this weekend issued a stark warning that the system is close to paralysis and has destroyed the business case for developers and investors. In the year, the number of housing projects of more than one dwelling facing judicial review rose by 40%. Five of the 34 legal case cases were taken by developers. The Business Post, 23rd March
Upcoming Planning Lapses Planning for around 20,000 apartments is set to expire over the coming two years according to a new report. The Banking and Payments Federation Ireland Housing Market Monitor also says 75,000 homes can be completed in 2025 and 2026, but that is well below the 50,000 a year the report says are needed. The report comes as separate figures from the Department of Housing yesterday showed a collapse last month in the number of so-called commencement notices. Builders registered 1,017 commencement notices last month. That was the lowest for February in a decade, with the exception of the Covid lockdown in 2021, and was down from a high of 3,715 last year, when numbers were boosted by incentive schemes. The Irish Independent, 24th March
Croí Cónaithe The State is on track to deliver less than 20% of the apartments it aimed for under a key scheme designed to deliver more homes for owner-occupiers. The Croí Cónaithe Cities Scheme aims to support the building of apartments for sale to owner-occupiers by providing funding to developers to cover the “viability gap” between the cost of building apartments and the market sale price. The target for the scheme was the delivery of 5,000 apartments by the end of 2026. However, new figures show just seven contracts with developers have been signed so far for the delivery of 870 apartments. The Irish Times, 20th March
OTHER
Galway The €24m transformation of Galway train station is due to be complete by 2026 according to a new update from Irish Rail this week. Plans to renovate Ceannt Station in Galway city will see new platforms, increased accessibility and a new roof for the train hall. The €24m redevelopment of Ceannt Station is funded by the Department of Housing’s Urban Regeneration and Development Fund and the National Transport Authority. The Irish Independent, 20th March
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