Over 800 new homes in past year

EIGHT-HUNDRED-AND-THIRTEEN dwellings were added to the residential stock in Wicklow during 2018, according to a GeoView Residential Buildings report published by GeoDirectory.

Nationally, 21,207 dwellings were added, with Dublin accounting for a third of the overall total.

In December of 2018 461 residential buildings were under construction in County Wicklow, representing 4.3 per cent of the national total. The Greater Dublin Area was responsible for 55.1 per cent of all construction activity

There were 1,463 residential property transactions in Wicklow in the twelve months to October 2018, with 25 per cent of these being new dwellings. Of this total, 25 per cent were new dwellings, higher than the national average of 20.7 per cent. The highest number of new dwelling purchases were recorded in Dublin (27.3 per cent of property transactions), and the surrounding commuter belt counties Meath (39 per cent), Kildare (33.4 per cent), Louth (28 per cent) and Wicklow (25 per cent).

The average residential property price in Wicklow in 2018 was €355,092, higher than the national average of €284,546. Residential property prices increased by 6.5 per cent across the twelve months, equating to €1,811 per month.

The town with the highest average residential property price was Greystones at €458,758. Dublin (€425,830), Wicklow (€335,092) and Kildare (€294,635) were the only counties to record house prices above the state average

Wicklow’s vacancy rate is 2.6 per cent, which is lower than the national average of 4.8 per cent. In total, 19 out of 26 counties experienced a decline in residential vacancy rates over the past twelve months. Dublin is the county with the lowest vacancy rate at 1.1 per cent, however it was one of only seven counties to experience an increase in vacancy rates, up 0.3 per cent on its corresponding rate last year.