Busy Summer Season on the
Horizon for Ireland's
Commercial Property Market
Overview
The traditional Summer selling season has now commenced, following what has been a relatively busy
start to the year for Ireland’s commercial property market. Investor demand remains robust and
interestingly, the volume of activity that is underway off-market in the investment, development & hotel
sectors of the market is quite considerable. With some sizeable assets on the market and others due to be
released for sale over the coming months, these sectors are on track to record impressive transaction
volumes in 2019.
Interestingly, as house price inflation continues to ease, there is growing evidence of a stabilisation in
residential land prices over recent months.
Meanwhile, in the occupier sectors of the market, activity remains brisk as the Summer months approach. Demand in the office sector in Dublin is at an all-time-high. Meanwhile, activity in the industrial & logistics sector is stymied only by a shortage of
modern stock with many of the new buildings that are now under construction in Dublin being let prior to
practical completion, which in turn is boosting planning activity. In the retail sector of the market,
activity is steady with several new entrants encouraged by the availability of some new retail stock after
several years of no new supply coming on stream.
Although there has been some further slippage in shopping centre and secondary retail park yields over
recent months, in contrast, other sectors of the Irish property market still have potential to experience some
further yield compression. Office rents in Dublin’s suburbs increased over recent months while secondary
and provincial industrial rents have also experienced some upward pressure recently.