How one-bed apartments are destroying Dublin’s docklands

With the hit of the pandemic, many couples have begun disapproving of one-bedroom apartments due to the lack of space to work remotely and live. This has led to many of the properties near the Dublin docklands to drop in demand, essentially leading to that market collapsing on itself.

A report has shown that the rent has fallen an average of 13% on these properties since March of 2020, and even more so than that at the upper ends of the market. But while much of the short-term rentals for these properties fell, the report showed that the supply of the long-term rental units more than doubled. This, in combination with the reduced demand overall due to the COVID restrictions and limiting travelling, has cased the rent to fall in the second the third quarter of last year. The average rent for the properties was €2,312 per month, 6.97% lower than in 2019.

At the end of 2020, during the fourth quarter, the rent costs were able to stabilize due to rising demands mainly fueled by the returning of technology …

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Will working at home be a norm to stay?

No one would have imagined that society would be able to shift the majority of jobs to working virtual and at home. But with the COVID pandemic, exactly that has happened. But not everyone is happy with this change. Many individuals find working at home not as efficient, but many more people are looking forwards to keep on living this lifestyle even after quarantine ends.

This means that businesses and the government may just have to find a way to establish a more legitimate framework to keep this process, rather than think of this situation as a temporary response to the global pandemic. But this begs the questions: will employers really allow employees to be able to work remotely on a permanent basis? And if that is the case then who will be paying for the costs of working?

Recently the government passed legislation on working at home which legislated the “right” to be able to request to work from home from your employers. This does not mean that all jobs and occupations will have this benefit, nor does the …

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Is Renting really a bad thing?

Should you rent or should own it? This may be a controversial topic but let us clear up the misunderstandings and go over the facts.

Some may think, “Isn’t renting just throwing money away in the trash while buying a home you are putting it towards something you will own in the future?” Yes, it is but not for a long time. Many individuals pay their mortgages from 5 years upwards to 20 years or more! The first 5 to 10 months of mortgage mostly interest, meaning you are still throwing that money out the window as well. If you are tight on money already, attempting to own your first home might not be the right time for you. It may be great for some, but it could be a potential burden for others.

Although homes generally appreciate there is always a risk of depreciation due to external factors, like companies moving out of the city causing many residents to move away. If the house …

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Ireland Selling Fewer Homes during COVID

Insight of the COVID pandemic hitting global markets. The sharp effect on the Irish economy and society were evident in the housing industry, where the number of transactions sharply decreased, even though the house prices across the country remained relatively unchanged.

In the most recent GeoView Residential Buildings Report, it shows that in the last 12 months, a total number of 35,542 properties were sold and property transactions took place. This shows nearly a 22% decrease in the number compared to the number of transactions in 2019, the year before the shutdown. This trend was reflected in nearly every county, with Dublin having the largest number of decreases at nearly 4000. Within the number of transactions that were made in the past year, only 20% of the properties were newly built properties, which is slightly above the amount in the previous year. This reflects the trend seen across the country of current homeowners reluctant to keep their properties on the market as the pandemic hit due to the uncertainty of housing prices and whether the properties would be able to …

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Banks in Ireland Expecting to Slow in Recovery

According to a new study done by stockbroking firm Davy, Ireland’s banks can expect to see a slowing in recovery and business activity within the first quarter as the government extends the current lockdown that is Level 5 until foreseeable, March 5th. Even though recently, large banks such as AIB and the Bank of Ireland has reported that in the last quarter of 2020, the lending and other business activities have recovered more than projected from the slump at the start of the quarantine. Still, Davy’s analysts report that they do not expect lenders to book material additional to loan-loss provisions after last year as many of the consumers are looking at these on a case-by-case basis.

The extension of the lockdown and corresponding restrictions are likely to impact the recovery seen in Q3 and Q4 of 20-20, and will likely hit Q1 of 2021, which is seasonally the weakest quarter for new lending in Ireland. House buying will probably require a conservative approach from businesses to limit risk in the new market of loosening restrictions. Individual buyers and businesses …

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House Buying in Ireland

Buying a new home or property is possibly one of the most daunting tasks out there, especially for first-time buyers or international buyers. There are many regulations to keep in mind, and here is just a small list of actions to take that will make this process so much easier.

1: Builder: Contact a local builder and request them to look at the prospective property. They will be able to tell you how much additional work needs to be done for the property, and generally advise the state of the property.

2: Electrician Check: If you have the contact, call in a favor from an electrician to check the wires for issues and maintenance.

3: Structural survey: This will be an investment, and you’ll be surprised at the number of faults this check can find within a property, no matter how pretty the house may look from outside. The usual cost is around €1.5k, but worth it in the long run, if you are to meet large issues.

4: Deposit: Buying international means that you may have to put in …

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What does Quarantine’s End Mean for Property Prices?

Dublin property agents predict that local property prices can see as large as a 5% increase as the lockdown regulations are lifted in the upcoming months. Many agencies have reported a large influx of registered potential buyers, some firms even registering nearly tripe the number as the same period in past years. This rush of buyers is largely due to the pandemic putting stops to many families’ plans of setting and signing mortgages. For others, it may be the desire to invest in a discounted property before prices skyrocket. Regardless, the sudden increase in demand for properties is sure to cause discrepancies within the real estate market.

Several factors driving demand include the strength of new mortgage approvals in the last quarter of 2020, and the growing availability and willingness of mortgage-lending rule exemptions of banks to offer to potential borrowers in 2021. There has also been a large group of potential buyers who have recently obtained loan approvals and are potential targets for these mortgage-lending rule exemptions in the past 6 months.

As for the number of properties in …

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What Does the Biden Administration bring to Ireland?

With the inauguration of Joe Biden, an ending of the four years of the highly debated Trump Administration begins. Many people are overjoyed with the change in power, but there is also some doubt. The main focus of Biden, as stated in his inauguration speech is to “restore the soul of America”, but what does that mean and entail for Ireland and our relationship with the US?

The effects of US government policies have long-lasting effects on the Ireland economy. Especially changes in corporate tax code on the US international companies that operate within our borders, employing nearly 160,000 people. These businesses are the case of nearly a €7 billion unforeseen fall of Irish corporation tax receipts over the last half-decade. The Trump administration was a strong advocate for tax reforms aimed to bring said organizations’ operations closer to home in the US. This included nearly a 10.5% charge on global low-taxed income, or otherwise known as the Gilti tax. The Gilti profits tax has been set far too low, and therefore did not discourage US companies to shift their …

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Economic Results of the New US President

The swearing-in of the new US President; Joe Biden, has caused many discrepancies in the world stock market and the value of the dollar this past Thursday. Stock prices are skyrocketed, and the dollar fell as investors began to bet major stimulus. Surprisingly, Asian stocks have reached all-time highs overnight and are predicted to keep rising. MSCI’s global index shows that nearly 50 countries added 0.3% to the 76% rally since the market crash due to COVID last March.

It has been reported that Republicans in the US Congress have stated they will cooperate with the Biden administration in the US’s top priority $1.9 trillion fiscal-stimulus plan to get the economy up and running. There are still some oppositions against the plan, but the final amount is expected to fall at least 5% of the US gross domestic product. Chief economist at BNY Mellon investment management; Shamik Dhar states that the benefit of a larger stimulus is viewed as outweighing the negative impacts of regulation and taxes. He supports this fiscal-stimulus plan and expects the monetary policy to remain largely …

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Higher Loan Growth Expected as the Pandemic Lifts

Spain’s large lender company: Bankinter, which currently owns Avant Money, has published new research results. These results predict the outcome of loan growth and higher lending income across its citizens and markets as lower provisions led to its 4th-quarter profits to fall less than in previous quarters.

The lender identified possible success within its Irish market business. Especially for the reason of offering credit card, home, and mortgage loans. After releasing these research results, we saw Banklinter’s shares rise by more than 7% this past Thursday after it stated that is their net interest income would be growing in 2021 despite the negative interest rates in the first half. Net Interest Income (NII) is defined by the difference between the company’s’ earnings on loans and the costs.

Bankinter’s chief financial officer, Mr. Diaz, has spoken up and told analysts that the company is expected to show strong actives of loan growth in both mortgage and consumer lending in Ireland, Spain, and Portugal. This is shown by Net profit at the bank falling to 8.7% to €97 million compared to €115 …

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