The Greater Dublin Area, which encompasses Dublin, Kildare, Meath and Wicklow, as well as regional centres including Cork, Galway and Limerick, experienced a significant boost in development land transaction activity during the first half of 2024. As per recent investigations by estate agency Sherry FitzGerald, the value of these transactions soared to nearly €411 million.
This is a stark increase from the previous year’s €146 million during the same timeframe. Moreover, it exceeds the €318 million average typically seen in the first half of the year, as reported by the study’s authors. It’s crucial to note that this impressive figure was primarily propelled by two major deals. The pricier transaction, involving the US Embassy purchasing the former Jury’s Hotel site in Ballsbridge, accounted for €152 million. Meanwhile, the runner-up in terms of value saw Cairn Homes pay over €50 million to Cannon Kirk, a developer, for a 70-acre residential site in Donabate, which could potentially house up to 1,020 new homes.
Despite the value surge, the actual number of transactions held steady with 43 closing sales during the first half of this year compared to 40 in the same 2023 period. Jean Behan, Sherry FitzGerald’s senior economist and research head, attributed the heightened activity within the development land market to a combination of encouraging economic forecasts, decreased construction costs, expected lower lending rates, and ongoing state efforts to combat the housing crisis.
A sales analysis on a regional level indicates that 59% of the property sold during the first half of 2024 is in Dublin. Simultaneously, Cork and Galway collectively constitute 12% of the total sites sold, whereas, Meath comprises 10%. The remaining minor percentage of sales occurred in Kildare and Wicklow with 5% and 2% of the sales respectively.
Brian Carey, Sherry FitzGerald’s commercial director, noted an uplift in confidence in the development-land sector prompted by a favourable interest-rate forecast and a stable planning and legislative environment. Yet, he highlighted a persisting deficiency in development land supply to fulfill demand. Despite this, he remains optimistic due to recent robust sales processes for major residential developments undertaken by Sherry FitzGerald Commercial. He believes that if developers can gain more vast sites alongside a continued steady planning system, the development sector is well prepared to supply the much required housing.
Sherry FitzGerald further commented that significant steps are still needed to tackle the ongoing scarcity of housing stock. They highlighted the necessity for more effort towards meeting the expanding population’s demands, which entails ensuring a sufficient supply of serviced land and the essential infrastructure to support residential developments. This would involve a crucial evaluation of the amount of zoned land that can be activated reasonably promptly. This article was later updated to incorporate two additional deals reported to Sherry FitzGerald subsequent to their research’s publication.