Daft Property - Irish Property News

Nama declines to issue list of art collections to be auctioned... A NUMBER of valuable artworks seized by the National Asset Management Agency from property developers are to be put up for auction in the coming months. However, Nama has declined to provide a list of the art collections it has acquired, saying only that it was “keenly interested in getting best prices for the works”. Last month, the agency published a list of assets it had for sale but it made no reference at that time to the various art collections seized from developers who own billions to the banks. While the agency will not name the individuals involved, it has already seized the art collection of Derek Quinlan – a former tax inspector turned property speculator, and resident of Shrewsbury Road, Dublin 4 – who moved to Switzerland in 2009. It is expected other collections assembled during the boom will come under Nama’s control in the months and years ahead as the assets of other developers and companies a...

Investors snap up 'bankable' artworks... WORKS from famous landscape artists are being snapped up by investors as 'bankable' options for their nest eggs. Antiques, furniture, art, gold, stamps and coins are once again being purchased as long-term investments, according to people in the auction industry. It comes as property values continue to fall and confidence in the stock markets -- and particularly in bank shares -- remains fragile. Now those with money to invest towards their retirement are looking to the art world. "They think they (paintings) are bankable and they are probably right," said Ian Whyte, managing director of Dublin auction house Whyte's. "I remember particularly in the late '70s, when inflation was running at 18pc to 20pc a year, people were purchasing tangible art collections, antiques, furniture, stamps and coins. "People are uncertain about banks and they want to buy into something tangible. Property is no...