Construction activity in Louth among highest in country

There were 1,196 buildings under construction in Louth in June 2023, with the level of construction activity in the county accounting for 5.2% of all buildings under construction in the country, according to the latest GeoDirectory residential report, released on Wednesday.

GeoDirectory was jointly established by An Post and Tailte Éireann to create and manage Ireland’s only complete database of commercial and residential buildings. Tailte Éireann is the state agency responsible for property registrations, property valuation and national mapping services.

The report, which presents data on the residential building stock using the GeoDirectory database of residential address points, provides a unique and up-to-date analysis of the Irish housing market, including stock levels and vacancy rates across the country, as well as on construction activity, residential transactions and property prices.

According to the GeoDirectory Residential Buildings Report for Q2 2023, only Dublin, Kildare, Cork and Meath recorded higher levels of construction activity in June.

Looking at data relating to Louth, 790 new addresses were added to the GeoDirectory database in the 12 months to June 2023. It represents a 31% fall however on the number of new addresses added in the 12 months to June 2022.

A total of 1,066 housing commencements were recorded in Louth in the 12 months to June 2023, among the highest in the country, with Dublin, Cork, Kildare, Meath and Wicklow recording higher commencement figures.

With regards to the composition of housing stock in Louth, the vacancy rate recorded was 2.5% in the second quarter (Q2) of 2023, the fifth lowest in the country, and lower than the State average vacancy rate of 3.9%. The occupancy rate was 97.1%, with the remaining 0.4% comprising holiday homes.

The GeoDirectory database includes a dwelling as vacant if it is vacant and ready to be inhabited, does or does not receive post, or is a dwelling that is vacant and requires a small amount of cosmetic/repair work to make it habitable.

The report also provides data on derelict address points. It classifies a building as derelict when structural work/reconstruction
is needed before it can be re-occupied, usually leaving the building dormant for several years. 1.1% of the State total of derelict address points were in Louth, the third lowest in the country.

Over the 12 months to May 2023, 1,367 residential property transactions took place in Louth. 24.8% were for new dwellings and the average property price was €279,663. The source for the data used here by GeoDirectory was the CSO.

Looking at rent prices, the report provides data on standardised average rents in new tenancies in Q4 2022. In Louth it was €1,254. It also provides data on house affordability for new dwellings and whether it is cheaper to rent or buy in Louth.

For first time buyers, buying a new dwelling, it worked out more expensive to buy than rent based on the following criteria: a median new house price of €310,000, 90% LTV (assuming 10% deposit) of €279,000; monthly mortgage repayments of €1,292 (assuming a 30-year term with a 3.75% mortgage interest rate) versus monthly rent of €1,254.

The household income required to purchase a new home in Louth was €69,750, while the median household income in the county was €50,946.

For first time buyers buying an existing dwelling, it worked out cheaper to buy than rent in Louth. With median existing house prices of €235,000 and 90% LTV of €211,500, monthly repayments were €979 - €275 lower than the monthly rent of €1,254. The household income required to purchase an existing home was €52,875.