Housing market 'overwhelmingly dependent' on Government investment, says Taoiseach
An Taoiseach Micheál Martin at the turning of the sod at GE HealthCare in Cork. Photo, Darragh Kane
Taoiseach Michéal Martin has said the housing market is "overwhelmingly dependent" on government investment, adding that the private sector needs to be more involved to ensure the delivery of much-needed housing.
While unable to confirm the Government's housing targets for this year, Mr Martin said that that the key challenge this year will be to deliver the homes that began construction in 2024.
Asked if the the Government has an updated housing forecast for 2025, Mr Martin replied: "Not yet, although, we had very significant commencements last year. The challenge now will be to realise those to completions."
Figures released by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) last week revealed that the number of new homes built in Ireland fell by 6.7% last year, with the number of completions significantly lower than Government targets and forecasts.
There were 30,330 new dwelling completions in the whole of 2024, down from the 32,525 completed in 2023, the CSO found, with the drop largely due to a 24.1% fall in the number of apartments completed.
The drop in housing completions means the Government missed its Housing for All target of 33,000 by a significant margin. That figure was generally viewed as a conservative one, with the demand for new homes estimated by various bodies at between 40,000 and 50,000 homes each year in order to resolve the ongoing shortage.
Significant shortages in supply has been coupled with continued hikes in house prices, with most recent data from Daft.ie showing the rate of price increase for a home in Ireland hit its highest level for nearly a decade in 2024.
According to the website's report, house prices rose by 9% on average across the country last year, with the typical listing price nationwide standing at €332,109 in the last three months.
This increase was the highest since 2017, with prices now 30% higher than they were at the onset of the covid-19 pandemic in 2020.
At the Béal na Bláth commemoration speech last August, then taoiseach Simon Harris said: “This year, we will exceed our housing targets, with almost 40,000 homes built.” He echoed this in the Dáil again in October, telling Social Democrats leader Holly Cairns: “We are in a situation now where we will see close to 40,000 homes delivered this year.”
Speaking to the in Cork on Friday, Mr Martin said that more would need to be done to stimulate private sector investment in order to deliver much-needed housing.
"At the moment, the housing market is overwhelmingly dependent on government investment through the various schemes," citing the affordable housing scheme and first home scheme as an example.
"There is a need to get more private sector investment."
"I am having a fundamental look at this. In the rental market, the big problem is on the apartment side. The market needs to be examined in terms of incentivising greater private sector investment into apartment building."
In Cork, several large scale apartment developments have been either refused planning or put on indefinite hold. Earlier this month, planning permission was refused for almost 500 apartments on Jacob's Island over concerns about the traffic impact on one of the city's busiest junctions.
Developers Hibernia Star Limited were told by An Bord Pleanála, who ruled against their own inspector's decision, that in addition to traffic concerns, the dwelling size mix was unsatisfactory, noting the "high percentage of two-bed, four person apartments" in the proposed scheme, and the fact that a significant number were of a size greater than what was required.
Another decision by An Bord Pleanála put the construction of more than 1,300 apartments on hold indefinitely when it ruled against a new port facility on the former Irish Fertiliser Industries (IFI) plant at Marino Point in Cork Harbour in November.
Goulding Soil Nutrition sought to construct an agricultural fertiliser facility and develop the existing jetty at Marino Point to facilitate cargo vessels. Last year, developer O'Callaghan Properties was granted planning for the largest residential development plan to date for the city at the Goulding site at Centre Park Road and Monahan Road. However, those plans depended on a positive planning decision from An Bord Pleanála regarding the former IFI site.
Following the decision, Goulding said it would continue to operate from its Centre Park Road facility. As a result, the more than 1,300 apartment development has been put on indefinite hold now that Goulding will remain in the city.
Speaking on the lack of apartment developments, Mr Martin added: "We also need to look at the regulatory framework around apartment buildings. We certainly need more, there is no question.
"We were very disappointed with the figures. This is an emergency, we need to get more houses built and we need to get them built faster."
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