West Cork property market is alight and a delight for vendors at least

Pandemic continued to drive overseas and nationwide interst in 'brand name' West Cork

Lake House was a strong 2021 seller near Toormore, making €800,000 according to the Price Register

The West Cork residential property market has had another bumper year, with stock moving quite quickly across the board.

The lack of saleable housing stock is a significant concern in the residential property sector. We now have a number of buyers looking for properties that are just not currently available. Where are the buyers coming from? The answer is predominantly from Ireland, with Americans also very active in the prime residential home bracket. Purchasers from the UK are too making a comeback and this is across all price ranges. Anecdotally, they seem to be attracted to to our shores by the civic-minded attitude of the Irish people and our open inclusive socio-economic environment.

The domestic buyer market is made up of many different strands, but it is great to see young families moving to West Cork who now have the option to work remotely and make here their permanent home. This has been supported by the roll out of high-speed broadband and facilities such as The Ludgate in Skibbereen where people have the option to hot desk and have gigabit connectivity.

Broadband has become such a necessity when it comes to selling property, I would now include it as a required utility, the same as heating and electricity. Buyers’ attitudes to purchasing a holiday home have also changed. It is now very much seen as a second home where they plan to spend most of their summer and any other significant holiday during the year.

The challenges facing employers is now more complex than it has been in a generation, PWC issued a recent report ‘The Future of Work and skills survey 2021’. It was positive to note that the productivity of employees did not wane while they were working from home. One of the key findings of this report is that “now is the time for leaders to build an environment that supports sustainable productivity rather than fret about monitoring employees. Giving workers flexibility to manage their work and home lives as they see fit”.

A question I am also asked a lot is; do I think the property market is overheating? For most of us who still bear the scars of the recession, we know we cannot predict the future and I would challenge anyone who says they can. Yes, it is currently a sellers’ market but the difference between now and fifteen years ago, is that this market is not fuelled by credit. At least 90% of our sales are with buyers who have the funds available to complete the purchase and do not have to rely on getting a mortgage. This puts buyers who have to depend on a mortgage at a significant disadvantage but cash is, as it ever will be, king.

Liss Ard, near Skibbereen

Above all this year, 2021 will stand out for me professionally as an incredible year in the West Cork prestigious home market. We started the year with the sale of Liss Ard Estate (jointly with Sherry FitzGerald County Homes) which will be bookended by Stone Hall, Glandore going sale agreed. We also sold The Rocket House, Tally Ho and East House Castletownshend. There was extensive interest in both The Lake House, Toormore, and Casa Dunmanus Goleen, both of which achieved well above their guide price. This demand for quality waterfront, coastal or period properties does not seem to be abating.

2021 though has not been a bed of roses. Site sales have proved challenging due to increasing build costs and the commercial retail sector has also taken a hit. Though the biggest factor affecting the property market across the board, is the length of time it takes to transact a property. There is a lot of paperwork that sellers need to pull together in order for their solicitor to issue contracts for sale.

If I have any piece of advice for potential sellers, talk to your solicitor before approaching an estate agent and find out what you need to do to get your property market-ready.

So, as we are nearing the end of 2021, it has been a frenetic year business-wise in many respects but in our business, on January 1 st 2022 the slate is wiped clean and we start again. Who knows what will happen but I bet before you started reading this article you would have predicted that I’d have mentioned the B word or definitely the C word at least once!

Maeve McCarthy is an estate agent based in Skibbereen, West Cork

Maeve McCarthy is a director of Charles McCarthy Estate Agents & Valuers Skibbereen