National Commercial Vacancy Rate Rises to Ten-Year High of 14% in Q4 2022
GeoDirectory report finds that the rate of commercial vacancies increased in 18 counties in the twelve months to December 2022
GeoDirectory Commercial Vacancy Rates Report Q4 2022
-
The national commercial vacancy rate increased by 0.1 percentage points (pp) to 14% in Q4 2022, the highest level reported by GeoDirectory since the report began in 2013
-
Ten-year trends show that, with the exception of Dublin, every county experienced an increase in commercial vacancy rates between January 2013 and December 2022
-
In total, there were 29,581 empty commercial units across the country in Q4 2022
-
At 19.6%, Sligo recorded the highest commercial vacancy rate, followed by Galway (17.6%) and Donegal (17.5%)
-
The lowest commercial vacancy rates were recorded in Meath (10.2%), Wexford (10.4%) and Kerry (12.2%)
-
Shannon, Co. Clare was the town with the highest commercial vacancy rate in the state at 29.8%, after increasing by 5.9% in the twelve months to December 2022.
To request your copy of our Q42022 Commercial Vacancy report please email your interest to info@geodirectory.ie
February 28th 2023
The national commercial vacancy rate increased by 0.1 percentage points (pp) to 14% in the year to Q4 2022 according to the latest GeoDirectory Commercial Vacancy Rates Report, published today. According to the report the commercial vacancy rate in Ireland hit a ten year high, the highest level recorded by GeoDirectory since the report began in 2013. The report, prepared by EY, found that commercial vacancies increased in 18 out of 26 counties.
County Commercial Vacancy Rates
Sligo, at 19.6%, was the county with the highest commercial vacancy rate, followed by Galway (17.6%) and Donegal (17.5%). The west of the country continued to record high commercial vacancy rates in Q4 2022, with the commercial vacancy rate in Connacht reaching 17.6%, an increase of 0.3% compared to the same period in 2021.
Meath (10.2%) remained as the county with the lowest commercial vacancy rate in the state, closely followed by Wexford (10.4%) and Kerry (12.2%).
In Dublin, the commercial vacancy rate was unchanged from Q4 2021 at a rate of 12.9%, which remains the highest level recorded in Dublin since Q4 2016.
Ten-Year Trends
GeoDirectory released its first Commercial Vacancy Rates Report in January 2013. The Commercial Vacancy Rate at the time was 11.4%, 3.9 percentage points lower than the 14.0% rate recorded in Q4 2022. With the exception of Dublin, every county has experienced an increase in commercial vacancy rates over the past decade. Donegal, at 5.5 percentage points, registered highest increase in commercial vacancy rates as a percentage of stock between January 2013 and December 2022 (12.0% to 17.5%).
Analysis of Towns and Dublin Districts
This report examined the commercial vacancy rates among a sample of 80 towns located across the state. It found that Shannon, Co. Clare was the town with the highest rate in Q4 2022, at 29.8%. Ballybofey, Co. Donegal (29.2%), Edgeworthstown, Co. Longford (28.4%), Boyle, Co. Roscommon (27.7%), and Sligo Town (25.4%) completed the top five towns by highest commercial vacancy rate.
Gorey, Co. Wexford and Greystones, Co. Wicklow were the towns with the lowest commercial vacancy rate in the country, at 7.1% each.
Within the Dublin area, Dublin 17 recorded the largest year-on-year increase in vacancy, growing by 1.5% to 14.6%. Dublin 9 had the highest vacancy rate of 17.2%, increasing by 0.4% from Q4 2021. The Dublin postcode with the lowest vacancy rate was Dublin 15, at 7.1%. Nine out of the 22 Dublin areas recorded a decrease in vacancy rates, with 16 recording vacancy rates below the national average of 14%.
Commercial Address Points by Sector
Using NACE* codes to classify units by economic sector, GeoDirectory is able to identify broad trends in the use of commercial units nationally. Of the 181,129 occupied address points in the state in Q4 2022, 156,471 (86.4%) were assigned a NACE code.
The services sector, including hospitality and tourism, had the largest share of commercial sites, accounting for 49.3% of the overall total. The services sector also had the largest reduction in the number of commercial units, recording a decrease of 1033 units, which accounted for 39% of the total reduction in commercial properties.
Looking specifically at the accommodation and food (A&F) service sector, 22,500 units were classified under this sector in Q4 2022 a decrease of 106 when compared to Q4 2021. Kerry, at 24.8%, had the highest proportion of Accommodation and Food service units in the country, followed by Clare (20.9%), Donegal (19.1%), Leitrim (18.9%) and Galway (17.8%).
The retail and wholesale sector was the second-largest sector in terms of occupying commercial sites, making up 22.2% of the total NACE codes. In the year to Q4 2022, there were 767 fewer Retail and Wholesale units recorded across the country.
Commenting on the findings of the latest Commercial Vacancy Rates Report, Dara Keogh, Chief Executive of GeoDirectory said, “The rate of commercial vacancies is the highest level recorded by GeoDirectory since the Commercial Vacancy Rates Report began in 2013, continuing the trend of increasing rates in recent years. It is likely that this will continue in the short to medium term, as working-from-home becomes more formalised, combined with the growth of online retail and services, resulting in businesses requiring less physical space than previously.”
Annette Hughes, Director of EY Economic Advisory Services said, “Only five counties in the country recorded a decrease in commercial vacancy rates, while counties along the west coast continue to exceed the national average. Looking at specific economic sectors, there was a notable drop in the number of Service and Retail & Wholesale units, which points to the ongoing challenges these sectors face due to evolving economic trends and geopolitical uncertainties.”
ENDS
For Further Information:
Killian Keys, Wilson Hartnell Public Relations, 086-1024302, killian.keys@ogilvy.com
Notes to Editor:
Dara Keogh is available for interview
*NACE Rev. 2 is the statistical classification of economic activities, an acronym for General Industrial Classification of Economic Activities within the European Communities.
To request your copy of our Q42022 Commercial Vacancy report please email your interest to info@geodirectory.ie
About GeoDirectory - Data Intelligence for Targeted Growth
The GeoDirectory database is the most comprehensive address database of residential and commercial properties in the Republic of Ireland. A copy of the GeoDirectory Commercial Vacancy Rates Report is attached in PDF format and is available at www.geodirectory.ie
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.
For further information or to view relevant case studies please visit: www.geodirectory.ie and @GeoDirectory_ie on Twitter.
EY Economic Advisory Services is a leading economic consultancy with a strong record of research across many areas and sectors, including building and construction. EY staff have accumulated considerable experience in working with a range of private and public sector clients, including Government departments, local authorities and other public sector agencies.
Past GeoDirectory Commercial Vacancy Reports are available to view at: https://www.geodirectory.ie/knowledge-centre/reports-blogs and https://www.ey.com/en_ie/strategy-transactions/ey-dkm-economic-advisory-services
To request your copy of our Q42022 Commercial Vacancy report please email your interest to info@geodirectory.ie