North Cork house prices are finally on the rise
PRICES are on the rise in north County Cork as towns such as Mallow are finally experiencing a long-awaited economic recovery and attracting buyers priced out of Cork city, Carrigaline and Ballincollig who are willing to commute from Mallow by train - just a 20-minute journey.
The price of a four-bed semi in town rose 10pc to €230,000 last year and is likely to rise a further 7pc by the end of 2018.
John Singleton of Sherry FitzGerald O’Donovan in Mallow says “Mallow took longer to find its feet and only just saw a turnaround in 2017, so we have seen dramatic rises.
“The market has been very, very busy because the availability of credit has started to become normalised. But we haven’t seen much construction activity in Mallow town, so there is shortage of supply in both new homes and second-hand homes.
“That supply is only going to tighten this year because there are no plans for new builds to come on stream.”
The Clonmore scheme in Mallow - a resurrected development of detached and semi-detached houses that was put on ice after the crash - was finished off and its remaining stock was sold.
But an increase in building costs means it’s not financially viable for developers to build three-bed semis in Mallow when they could make €300,000 for the same product in Midleton or Carrigaline, Singleton says.
Mallow is drawing both investors, because it offers a high rental yield, and commuters priced out of Cork city suburbs who can use the rail service to get to the city centre in less than 30 minutes.
A growing number of tenants in north County Cork are seeking to buy because an exodus of landlords from the rental market two years ago has driven up rents for remaining stock - a semi-detached home in Mallow that costs €1,000 a month to rent would cost €850 in mortgage repayments, Singleton explained.
As a result of that demand, prices have risen for properties that are perceived as affordable - including two-up two-downs, which soared 37pc in price to €150,000 last year and are expected to jump a further 17pc to €175,000 this year.
While Mallow’s property market has benefited from the town’s proximity to Cork city and its suburbs, less accessible towns across North Cork, such as Buttevant and Kanturk, haven’t yet experienced quite the same demand, Singleton said.