Prices rise by average of 15pc in the Marble county
KILKENNY AVERAGE PRICE: €235,000 Kilkenny City, Thomastown, Callan, Castlecomer
Change: s 22pc
One Year Forecast: s 3pc Assessing Agent: Sherry FitzGerald McCreery THE MARKET KILKENNY is crying out for new homes, particularly around the city. The lack of stock and the increased interest in the county, pushed prices up by an average of 22pc last year, taking the county’s prices slap bang into bank lending ceilings for average earners. “Second-hand properties are selling very quickly and there is still a pent-up demand. We are hopeful, however, that there are a number of schemes in the making that should come on track in the third quarter of 2019,” says Peter McCreery of Sherry FitzGerald McCreery.
The expected new homes plus the fact that this year’s big hikes take most types slap bang into lending limit boundaries for average earners, mean that conversely, little in the way of growth is expected for this year. A couple of new developments came to the market last year, like Beechwood on Castlecomer Road where a four-bed bungalow comes with an asking price of €675,000. At Friary Walk in Callan three-bed terraced homes started at €179,950. The first phase of Friary Walk is sold and work has started on the second phase.
Not all property types saw prices move at the same pace with four-bed detached houses going up by 6pc, from €330,000 to €350,000, while at the other end, more affordable two-bed apartments in the city rose by 36pc, and are now selling at an average of €150,000.
Mr McCreery noted that there was strong interest at all ends of the market last year. “We would say that we’ve had a consistent flow of sales right through from the €80,000s to a couple at €1m-plus. There’s a good, strong demand all over.”
Towns like Thomastown and Callan were popular with Dublin buyers in search of a better quality of life. “There is definitely evidence of people getting out of the rat race and traffic jams and sell-
ing up in Dublin,” says McCreery. “They are coming down here with a few bob in their pocket and buying a very fine house for between €400,000-€500,000.”
Large homes in these parts have been selling for big prices with 16 Foxes Covert on the Mount Juliet Estate fetching €1.1m and Mallardstown House in Callan making f€715,000.
Mr McCreery believes Brexit will make Ireland a more attractive place to relocate to. “We’ve seen a flow of Americans and Australians in the past year looking for an Irish base. These buyers from overseas are looking at the more substantial houses at the high end of the market.”
McCreery predicts an average rise of 3pc in values of properties in Kilkenny, with some expected to stay static and others, like the four-bed semis in the city, to go up by 7pc in 2019.