Louth rents show a massive jump

The cost of renting property has jumped more in Louth than anywhere else in the country, according to the latest quarterly Rental Report by Daft.ie.

Louth rents were rents were on average 17.3% higher in the final three months of 2016 than a year previously. The average advertised rent is now €952, up 56% from its lowest point.

This compares to Dublin where the annual rate of inflation in rents during 2016 was 14.5%, the second highest rate on record since 2002.

Rental prices across all cat- egories have shown a massive increase, from a one bedroom apartment jumping by 19.5% to €678 per month to a five bedroom house which has increased by 23.1% to €1,159 per month.

Nationally Daft.ie are reporting the largest increase rents ever recorded in their report which extends back to 2002, with the average monthly rent at a new high for the third quarter in a row.

Ronan Lyons, economist at TCD and author of the Daft Report, said: ‘ The latest figures from the rental market remain very concerning. Not only do rents continue to reach new peaks, rental inflation continues to increase in both Dublin and nationwide.

‘While measures to control rental inflation may help sitting tenants, they do little to address the underlying issue of a lack of supply. Indeed, they may hinder supply, by encouraging the exit of existing landlords who had not substantially increased rents in recent years. Addressing construction costs remains the best way of addressing supply shortages and the audit of build costs remains the single most important next step for policymakers, for that reason.’