Property buyers across the globe are looking for keys to the kingdom
'We haven’t seen this level of demand since the boom'. Estate agents reporting huge demand for homes on the Ring of Kerry.
THE flood of city dwellers who have been relocating to the coast since the start of the pandemic has caused a run on property in the Ring of Kerry.
Auctioneers in the area say they have seen a massive surge in demand since the end of the first lockdown and, because most of the properties on their books are either sold or sale agreed, are now experiencing a chronic supply shortage.
Some saw bidding wars on properties that had previously taken years to sell — others sold houses in record quick time, some for higher prices than they had expected to achieve, while quite a few had virtual sales to buyers in far-flung places.
“We haven’t seen this level of demand since the boom,’’ says Elaine Daly of Sherry FitzGerald Daly who added that the time it takes to sell a property has shortened.
“Prior to this a sale would typically take six months – now it’s three months and some are happening even quicker."
Quite a number of her sales have been to buyers relocating from cities to work from home in a scenically located, more affordably priced home; she's also sold to Irish people returning from abroad and to Irish buyers looking for a Ring of Kerry holiday home.
Although the number of Irish buyers has increased, she says she is still getting holiday home enquiries from foreigners.
Last year she sold a property in Tourist with beautiful sea views to a UK couple for half a million euros.
“Virtual viewings are working well and have led to around ten sales," she observes.
Ms Daly says that many buyers are looking for properties in the €250,000 to €350,000 range.
"For €250,000 they will get a detached house on half an acre and over €300,000 will probably get them a sea view."
Eleanor Connor, of Connor-Scarteen auctioneers, says the buyers she has been seeing are mostly Irish and include relocating city dwellers and returning ex-pats.
“Most of them are cash buyers – not many have mortgages," she says.
Since February six properties on her books have gone sale agreed from virtual viewings and she says she doesn’t have much left now.
“There’s a huge demand for old farmhouses with sea views.“
A ‘doer-up ‘cottage near Sneem which had been on her books for a few years recently went sale agreed after a bidding war.
Such is the level of demand for properties that the had difficulty in finding properties to feature in Kenmare or near the Ring of Kerry.
Elaine Daly of Sherry FitzGerald says that property availability in the area is at the lowest level she has ever seen. While the end of lockdown is expected to bring new properties on the market, Ms Daly says the level of demand is so high now that it will be difficult to meet.
Everything an affluent Irish ex-pat could need or want in a west coast Irish residence seems to be on offer at Long Lake House at Tahilla near Sneem.
A modern five-bed hexagonal-shaped house, with 9,500 sq ft of living space and 13 acres of gardens — has its own lake with a Geneva-style jet fountain, a pier, a boathouse, and a guest cabin. “ It also has magnificent views of Kenmare Bay and the Beara mountains and sunsets to die for,’’ says Elaine Daly of Sherry FitzGerald Daly.
The property’s €2.25 million price guide makes it the most expensive residence on the market in Kerry. “It was taken off the market last year but has come back now,’’ says Ms Daly noting that the original asking price was €1 million higher.
She says that she has since had quite a number of requests for virtual viewings from Irish expats in the US.
: Amazing for those who can afford it.
With its pretty traditional style appearance and affordable €199,000 guide price, this detached house at 4 Benjamin Close in Waterville must look enormously attractive to city buyers who want to relocate to the coast.
Part of a small development built in 2004, it’s a spacious property with over 1,500 sq ft of living space and almost half an acre of gardens.
Selling agents Connor-Scarteen auctioneers say it’s in excellent condition, has very good broadband. Accommodation includes a living room, a kitchen-dining-living space, a guest WC, a small utility room, a bathroom and three bedrooms, two with en-suites.
Overlooking Hogs Head Golf Course, the house is around a kilometre and a half from shops in Waterville.
: A substantial offering for €199,000, especially when you compare it to prices in cities.
Although 26 Grove Lodge in Killorglin may have been built as a holiday home, it is very well equipped to attract one of the many city buyers who have been home-hunting in Kerry since the start of the pandemic.
New to the market with an asking price of €209,500, it’s a spacious modern three-bed end of terrace house with 1,550 sq ft of living space.
In addition to providing ample space to work from home, it has scenic views and a balcony overlooking the River Laune at the rear. “It’s been completely refurbished, has new flooring and a new kitchen and is in excellent condition,’’ reveals Darragh Byrne of Jim Byrne Auctioneers. It is around a kilometre outside Killorglin.
: A scenic Kerry property close to services and just 20 km from Killarney.
The surge of demand for properties on the Kerry coast has brought renewed interest in this substantial four-bed house on Oysterbed Road near Sneem.
On the market with a guide price of €950,000, which makes it one of the most expensive properties available in the Ring of Kerry area, it is now being looked at virtually by several Dublin buyers as well as a few international ones. That’s according to selling agent Majella O’Sullivan who says the stone-fronted dormer property offers great space, spectacular views of Kenmare Bay as well as an acre of grounds that provides privacy and seclusion.
Built in the late 1990s, the property has a front balcony with panoramic views of the bay and the surrounding mountains.
: Expensive but spacious, and scenic.
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