More Bad News If You’re Renting a Home in Ireland…

It's more bad news for those of us at a landlord's mercy.

The latest PRTB Quarterly Rent Index, published today, shows that rents for private sector accommodation across the country rose by 6.9 per cent in the year between the first quarter of last year and the first quarter of this year.

Rents for houses were 6.5 per cent higher, while apartment rents were 7.8 per cent higher. News was worse again for renters in Dublin, with the Index showing figures up by 9.6 per cent, with house rents in the capital up 9 per cent in the year, and apartment rents up 10.8 per cent. Annual growth in rents for the market outside Dublin remained more subdued, recording growth of 5.3 per cent compared to Q1, 2014. Again the performance differed by property type. House rents outside Dublin increased by 5.7 per cent, while apartments increased by 5.2 per cent.

The PRTB Quarterly Rent Index is compiled by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) for the Board. It is based on the actual rents being paid, according to the PRTB’s records, as distinct from the asking or advertised rent.

In monetary terms, the rent for private sector accommodation across the whole country in Q1, 2015, was €835 – up from €781 in Q1 2014. The rent for apartments nationally was €878 (€815 a year earlier) and for a house it was €814 (€765 a year earlier). In Dublin, the rent in Q1, 2015, was €1,325 for a house and €1,205 for an apartment. A year earlier, Q1, 2014, the rent for a house was €1,215, and for an apartment it was €1,087. This represents a monthly increase in Dublin rent of €110 for a house or €118 for an apartment over the course of the 12 month period.

Outside Dublin, the rent in Q1, 2015, was €647, with houses averaging €665 and apartments, €627. A year earlier, these figures stood at €614, €629 and €596 respectively. This represents a monthly increase in rent outside of Dublin of €36 for a house and €31 for an apartment in the 12 month period.