Planning uncertainty fails to dampen demand for land
Land deals totalling €648m (£541m) were transacted across Ireland last year, up by 11% on 2020’s total, according to the latest figures from Savills Ireland.
The firm said that while issues such as planning uncertainty and cost inflation continued to present challenges, demand remained “very strong” for the right parcels of land.
Land in prime areas with planning permission attracted particularly strong bidding across sectors, said Savills, and for sites in the right areas, even those without planning were hotly contested. It cited the sale of City Quay for €40.5m in Q3 as an example. The price achieved was well ahead of the guide of €35m and attracted a deep pool of bidders.
Land deals totalling €648m (£541m) were transacted across Ireland last year, up by 11% on 2020’s total, according to the latest figures from Savills Ireland.
The firm said that while issues such as planning uncertainty and cost inflation continued to present challenges, demand remained “very strong” for the right parcels of land.
Land in prime areas with planning permission attracted particularly strong bidding across sectors, said Savills, and for sites in the right areas, even those without planning were hotly contested. It cited the sale of City Quay for €40.5m in Q3 as an example. The price achieved was well ahead of the guide of €35m and attracted a deep pool of bidders.
John Swarbrigg, director of development agency and consultancy at Savills Ireland, said: “2021 was a year of two distinct halves. The first half of the year was impacted by the difficulty of inspecting sites, with some vendors choosing to delay the sales process until later in the year as restrictions lifted. The second half of the year saw more robust sales volumes, comprising 64% of annual activity.”
He added: “There are approximately €450m in deals either currently, sale agreed or being marketed. This significant level of deal flow highlights the depth of demand for sites and suggests that 2022 will be another robust year.”
Industrial and logistics is expected to be particularly strong in 2022 as demand for space continues to rise, while developers are also likely to focus on residential land, watching how the post-pandemic return to the workplace unfolds and what that means for the residential market.
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City Quay © Christine Matthews
