COMMERCIAL VACANCY IN CORK BELOW NATIONAL AVERAGE

CONTINUED DECREASE IN OCCUPIED COMMERCIAL PREMISES IN WICKLOW THROUGHOUT 2014

Highlights:

 

  • 790 of the 6,455 commercial addresses recorded in Wicklow in 2014 were vacant. This is a vacancy rate of 12.2%.
  • 28,465 of the 223,107 commercial addresses recorded in the Republic of Ireland in 2014 are vacant.
  • In overall terms, 23.7% of vacant address points were located in Dublin and 10.5% of them were in Cork.
  • The national commercial vacancy rate in Q4 2014 was 12.8%, an increase of 0.4 percentage points since Q4 2013.
  • Kerry recorded the lowest vacancy rate of any county in Q4 2014 at 9.1% and Sligo recorded the highest at 16.5%.

 

2nd March: Commercial vacancy rates in Wicklow have increased, from 11.4% in 2013 to 12.2% 2014, according to new research published by GeoDirectory today. The total number of occupied commercial premises in Ireland decreased throughout 2014 from 195,545 in Q1 to 194,642 in Q4.

 

The new research is from the 2014 Q4 edition of GeoView which is published quarterly. It is the second annual review of commercial vacancy rates in Ireland that not only provides national data but also analyses the data by quarter, by county, by province and across a broad range of sectors in the Irish economy.

 

The review found that the national average commercial vacancy rate in Q4 2014 was 12.8%. This figure represents an increase in commercial vacancy of 0.4% since Q1 2014. This means that the average national commercial vacancy rate in 2014 was 12.6%. Kerry recorded the lowest vacancy rate of any county in Q4 2014 at 9.1%. Sligo recorded the highest commercial vacancy rate of any county in Q4 2014 at 16.5%.

 

All four provinces recorded an increase in their overall vacancy rate in 2014. The highest increase in commercial vacancy between Q4 2013 and Q4 2014 was recorded in Connacht where there was an increase of 0.8%. (13.9% in Q4 2013 to 14.7% in Q4 2014). The next highest provincial increase was in Ulster, where a 0.5% increase was recorded between Q4 2013 and Q4 2014 (12.0% in Q4 2013 to 12.5% in Q4 2014). Munster saw a commercial vacancy rate increase from 11.7% in Q4 2013 to 12.1%. The commercial vacancy rate in Leinster is at 12.6%, the same as in Q3 2014 however this figure is still above the 12.4% recorded in Q4 2013.

 

The data was published by GeoDirectory which was jointly established by An Post and Ordnance Survey Ireland (OSi) to create and manage Ireland’s only complete database of commercial and residential buildings. These figures are recorded through a combination of the An Post network of 5,600 delivery staff working with OSi.

 

According to Q4 figures, there were 223,107 commercial properties in Ireland, 28,465 of which are vacant. 790 of these vacant premises were in Wicklow. The highest vacancy rate recorded in Q4 was in Sligo with 16.5%, this was a decrease from the 16.6% vacancy recorded in Q3 2014. The lowest vacancy rate was seen in Kerry with 9.1%, a marginal increase on the Q4 2013 figure of 8.9%. Limerick experienced a large increase in commercial vacancy between Q4 2013 and Q4 2014 with an increase from 13.8% to 15%.

 

At 49,161 or 22% Dublin had the largest number of unique commercial address points followed by Cork (11.6% or 25,882) and Galway (5.7% or 12,817). Wicklow had 6,455 units.  Leitrim, Longford and Carlow had the lowest number of commercial address points with less than 3,000 units in each county, as was the case throughout 2013 and 2014.

 

Commenting on the findings, Dara Keogh, CEO, GeoDirectory said “We have observed similar trends during 2013 and 2014, forming at a county and regional level, which is providing us with an overview of the picture from a national perspective. Average commercial vacancy rates are increasing. However the rate of increase of vacancy is slowing.”

 

Annette Hughes, Director of DKM Economic Consultants said “We have now completed our second year of comprehensive quarterly reports on commercial building stock in Ireland. The GeoView report gives its readers a unique view of the geographical spread of commercial building stock in Ireland in 2014.”

 

The GeoView Commercial Premises Vacancy Report is published on a quarterly basis by GeoDirectory and DKM Economic Consultants, tracking commercial vacancy rates nationally and by county. 

 

A copy of the GeoView Commercial Premises Vacancy is attached in PDF format.

 

ENDS

 

Notes to Editor: 

 

Mr. Dara Keogh, CEO of GeoDirectory is available for interview. 

 

GeoDirectory was jointly established by An Post and Ordnance Survey Ireland (OSi) to create and manage Ireland’s only complete database of commercial and residential buildings.  The figures are recorded through a combination of the An Post network of 5,600 delivery staff working with OSi. 

 

The GeoDirectory database is used by many different companies and organisations across a diverse range of applications. Its database and services are used by Central Statistics Office to achieve more accurate census results,  Gas Networks Ireland has used for GeoDirectory to identify and categorise new potential customers and 11890 Directory Inquiries have used GeoDirectory to provide detailed directions and maps to their customers.

 

In the property sector, GeoDirectory is used by Daft.ie and the Property Registration Authority. In addition, utility companies, banking and insurance providers, and all local authorities use the database.

 

For further information or to view relevant case studies please visit www.geodirectory.ie

 

For further information, please contact:

Liam McHale

Wilson Hartnell

Tel: +353 1 6690152

Mob: +353 87 9140358