Yuletide sale signals season of good cheer
Back in the wild days of the boom it was a fond boast of auctioneers that they took a deposit on Christmas Eve — things were that good.
Well, this fresh new January, Tom Crosse of GVM’s Limerick office is retrieving the same sort of bragging rights, because, he says, he sold a farm “a day or two” prior to Christmas Day.
The sale followed on an auction of the holding in question, a 72-acre parcel of land at Acraboy, Monard, Co Tipperary, which was once part of the larger, Ballykisteen estate, part of which went on to become the Ballykisteen Resort at Limerick Junction.
The location and quality of the land was a draw at the auction and over 20 attended, says Crosse, with bidding opening at €500,000 and bid up to €580,000 at which stage bidding halted and a brief recess was called.
The property was withdrawn and private negotiations ensued with a deal concluded at around €650,000 — a little over €9,000 per acre for the property and very close to the guide given for the land.
Critically, the land adjoins Tipperary racecourse which is perhaps why the property was purchased by a Limerick-based businessman, according to the agent.
The property was the last item in a list of sales that included over 1,100 acres for 2013 says Crosse, with a transactional value of €10 million. The average price per acre for the mid west region was €8,800 he says, with good quality land fetching up to 10k per acre and exceptional properties making more.
Average or poorer land made anywhere from €4,000 to €7,000 per acre in the Limerick region, he says.
Demand was driven by farmers, he says, with banks keen to lend for agriculture acquisitions, and the increase in DIRT tax seeing more interest from investors — especially in situations where long leases enable tax free income and capital appreciation, said Tom Crosse of GVM in Limerick.
