Daft Property - Irish Property News

THERE was further gloom for homeowners after property prices plunged again last month. Prices have been diving now for almost four years. And there is no let-up in sight, with economists predicting prices will keep going down next year. The average residential property has lost almost €150,000 in value since the peak and is now worth around €169,000, according to the latest gloomy figures. Around €232,000 has been wiped off the value of houses and apartments in Dublin as the capital continues to suffer much sharper price declines than the rest of the country. The new figures from the CSO also show that the annual rate of decline in prices jumped to 15.6pc in November. Prices fell by 1.5pc last month and are now down 46pc from the peak of the market in early 2007, the official figures show. The CSO only gives percentage changes, but analysts have calculated that the price of an average property is now just €169,000. This is down from €314,000 when the property bubble was at its m...

92% of lots sold by Allsop... THE BIDDING was brisk at the Allsop Space auction of mostly distressed property in Dublin’s Shelbourne Hotel yesterday, as 1,600 people packed into the auction room and spilled out into the bar and lobby of the hotel. A total of 97 of the 108 properties sold under the hammer with a further two selling after auction, raising a total of €11.4 million. Around half were cash buyers – 30 per cent less than at previous auctions. A small group of protesters from a group calling themselves the Anti-Eviction Taskforce held a low-key protest outside the hotel. However proceedings came to a brief halt when one protester stood up in front of the auctioneer and warned about the “ill will” that could affect buyers of distressed property in communities. “Don’t bid then,” replied auctioneer Gary Murphy from UK-based Allsop, before thanking the protestor for his “kind words”. Around a third of the lots are apartments, and one of the bargains of the auction was a ...

The property dilemma -- to sit tight or cut your losses? It's a dilemma hitting thousands -- especially young couples living in apartments. What do they do -- sell now or hold on? Many of them were frightened on to the bottom rung of the property ladder and now find themselves in a home which is too small for their needs. They are asking themselves if they should take the hit on negative equity, and buy a house which can accommodate a growing family. And even if they do, where will they get the money to buy another property? A few years ago, many had held on in the hope of a soft landing, but now are wondering whether they should bite the bullet and jump. Already price falls of 40pc to 50pc have made family houses much more affordable. However, many couples who sell an apartment that they bought in the boom could find that the sale price is far less than the amount they owe to the bank. Banks are slow to allow them to sell, trade up and carry over the negative equit...

Bulldozers send boomtime buildings crashing down... TWO unfinished houses that would have fetched €200,000 each during the boom have been bulldozed because of public safety fears. The unoccupied houses -- and foundations for three more -- were levelled at Church View in Clongeen, Co Wexford, at a cost to the taxpayer of €28,000. Other residents of the estate last night said they were relieved that Wexford County Council had taken action against the developers, Impulse Construction Ltd, by knocking down the houses. They said the unfinished houses had attracted vandals and encouraged anti-social behaviour for some time, and were unsightly at the entrance to the estate. This was the first time houses had been demolished in a new estate in Wexford, but the Department of the Environment confirmed other houses had been demolished on a small number of occasions. Wexford County Council confirmed it has more plans in the pipeline to carry out "public safety works which may involv...

Nama 'perks' for builders add to sense of injustice Developers enjoying allowances on top of huge salaries -- and all at taxpayers' expense... DEVELOPERS who work for Nama will be entitled to claim expenses and may even stay in their palatial homes as they draw salaries ranging from €70,000 to €200,000, the Sunday Independent can reveal. Confirmation of the generous allowances being given by the State's so-called 'bad bank' is sure to provoke fresh anger from a public reeling from the revelation by Nama chief executive Brendan McDonagh last Wednesday that his agency has approved salaries of €200,000 for two of its biggest developers. Appearing before the Dail's Public Accounts Committee (PAC), Mr McDonagh also confirmed Nama's intention to approve salaries ranging from €70,000 to €100,000 a year for between 110 and 120 developers on its books before the end of this year. Confirmation of the multimillion euro pay bill has unsurprisingly been met...

Building slowdown stalls attempt to complete 2,000 'ghost' estates... WORK TO complete the State’s 2,000 unfinished housing developments has stalled due to a 40 per cent drop in on-site construction activity this year, according to the latest figures from the Department of the Environment. However, the vacancy rate of completed houses on “ghost” estates has fallen by one-fifth since the department published its survey on the extent of the problem last year. In addition, demolition has begun on estates were there is no prospect of completion, the department said. Last October the department published its first national survey of the extent of the ghost estate problem, where developments are left unfinished and only a fraction of homes are occupied. It identified more than 2,800 unfinished or vacant housing estates. A year on, some 700 estates have been completed and a further 100 on which no substantial work had started have been taken out of development, leaving a tot...

Nama may be forced to deliver on social housing... THE GOVERNMENT is considering plans to amend legislation that would oblige the National Asset Management Agency (Nama) to deliver more social housing and public amenities. Nama, created to purge banks of toxic property loans, has purchased some €31 billion of loans connected to thousands of residential properties – loans valued at over €72 billion at the height the property bubble. There is frustration in some circles of Government that the agency is not under any formal obligation to provide a “social dividend”. Minister for Housing Willie Penrose is understood to have written to the Attorney General in recent weeks seeking clarity on how Nama’s terms of reference could be changed to give it a broader remit that goes beyond securing the best achievable financial return for the State. Officials fear the agency is too focused on its commercial remit to generate profits and feel the State is at risk of losing out on opportuniti...