New reports shows slight drop in Wicklow’s commercial vacancies

Wicklow’s commercial vacancy rate has decreased slightly, according to a new report.

The GeoView Commercial Vacancy Report, prepared by EY-DKM Economic Advisory Services, found that the county’s commercial vacancy rate dropped by 0.1 pp to 12.1 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2019.

Arklow was the area with the highest vacancy rate for commercial spaces at 19 per cent while Greystones had the lowest vacancy rate of 7.6 per cent. The commercial vacancy rate in Bray was reported at 12.4 per cent and in Wicklow as 11.2 per cent.

The report identifed that around 12 per cent of the Garden County’s commercial buildings are used for accommodation and food services such as restaurants, cafes and hotels.

Wicklow was one of six counties nationwide to see a decrease in its vacancy rates. Of these six, four are located in Leinster, which suggests an east-west divide in regional development.

An analysis of the commercial property usage between 2010 and 2019 identified increase in the number of gyms and cafes nationwide.

The commercial vacancy rate in Dublin was 12 per cent, 1.3pp lower than the national average while the national commercial vacancy rate stood at 13.3 per cent in quarter 4 of 2019, which represented a slight increase on the same period in 2018.

Dara Keogh, CEO GeoDirectory said, ‘GeoDirectory’s recent commercial property reports have shown that there is a deepening divide between the east and west of the country in terms of economic activity, and this trend is showing no signs of slowing down. The report also provides a fascinating insight into the changing nature of commercial property usage. For example, the cultural trend of health and wellness has seen a 167 per cent increase in the number of gyms in the country over the past ten years, while the number of cafés in main urban centres has increased by over 50 per cent.’