According to the latest quarterly Rent Report by Daft.ie, rent in Laois is at an all time high while availability is at its lowest ever level.
The Rent Report shows that in the Midlands counties of Laois, Westmeath, Offaly and Longford, rents rose by an average of 10% in the year to March 2019 and are now 30% above their previous peak in early 2008.
In Laois, rents were on average 9% higher in the first quarter of 2019 than a year previously. The average listed rent is now €934, up 85% from its lowest point.
The average monthly rent nationwide during the first quarter of 2019 was €1,366, up 8.3% year-on-year. The average listed rent is now €337 higher per month than the previous peak in 2008 and almost €625 higher than the low seen in late 2011.
There are different trends in rental inflation across the country. In Dublin, the increase in rents in the year to December 2018 was 6.8%. Inflation is slowing in Leinster, with rents 7.3% higher than a year ago, half the rate of inflation seen two years ago.
Elsewhere in the country, rents continue to rise at double digit rates, with increases of between 10% and 15% in Cork, Galway, Limerick and Waterford cities, and increases of 12% on average in Munster, Connacht and Ulster.
Commenting on the report, Ronan Lyons, economist at Trinity College Dublin and author of the Daft Report, said: “The rental market remains plagued by weak supply at a time of strong demand.
“While the total number of rental homes on the market did improve slightly earlier in 2019, the figures for May have undone all that progress.
“Much of the commentary around new supply for the market is unhelpful, particularly talk of so-called ‘cuckoo funds’ – what in other countries are termed landlords.
“With the sale market showing signs of greater balance between supply and demand, policymakers must maintain their focus on boosting rental supply. A key part of that is developers building, and institutional landlords buying, new apartment blocks.”
Raychel O’Connell from Daft.ie said “Low availability of rental properties is clearly a major issue at the moment. With over 1.4 million property searches on Daft each day demand continues to be strong, despite decreasing supply in the current market.”
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