MyHome.ie Blog
  • MyHome Living
  • News
  • RetroFit Hub
  • Buyers Advice Hub
  • Selling
  • Renting
  • Mortgages
  • Property Report
MyHome.ie Blog
  • MyHome Living
  • News
  • RetroFit Hub
  • Buyers Advice Hub
  • Selling
  • Renting
    • Mortgage Learning Center
    • Calculators
    • Best Mortgage Table
  • Property Report
    • All Properties
    • Houses For Sale
    • Apartments For Sale
    • Available To View
    • Overseas Holiday Homes
      • Properties For Auction
      • Upcoming Auctions
      • BER Assessors
      • Property Conveyancing Solicitors
      • Pre-Purchase Surveyors
    • Find Agents
    • All Properties
    • Houses To Rent
    • Apartments To Rent
    • Available To View
    • Share
      • Irish Holiday Homes
      • Overseas Holiday Homes
  • New Homes
    • For Sale
    • To Rent
    • Auction
      • Residential Land
      • Commercial Land
      • Farm Land
      • Farms
      • Sites
    • MyHome Living
    • Buyer Advice Hub
    • Property Report
    • Property Price Register
    • Price Changes
  • Mortgages
    • Rental
    • Holiday Homes
    • Commercial
    • Sharing
Advertisement
  • Home
  • Finance
  • Housing affordability a "significant concern" for Ireland
Finance
May 10, 2024 - 08:38

Housing affordability a "significant concern" for Ireland

MyHome Content Studio
By MyHome Content Studio
Share this article
Facebook Share Twitter Share Linkedin Share Email Share Whatsapp Share
Housing affordability a "significant concern" for Ireland

Housing affordability is a “significant concern” for Ireland.

That’s according to the National Competitiveness and Productivity Council (NCPC) which has warned that the housing market is currently inhibiting the performance of Ireland's competitiveness.

The competitiveness watchdog also says the housing issue is undermining potential improvements in sustainable growth and in people’s well-being.

"In effect, housing affordability is a significant concern for Ireland," the NCPC said in its latest analysis, which looks in particular at the effects of labour capacity constraints on residential construction.

"It is also a capacity constraint representing a risk to Ireland’s international competitiveness, albeit that this is a concern across many advanced economies."

Advertisement

The NCPC report outlines the extent of labour shortages in the construction sector and pointed out that it is the only one with fewer employees today than during the Celtic Tiger-era, despite Ireland having a much larger population now compared to then.

It claims that addressing these labour market constraints is crucial when it comes to meeting targets under the Government’s Housing for All plan, along with targets for retrofitting and emissions reduction under its climate plan.

The report also states that close attention has to be given to the competing demands for labour across the construction sector and, in particular the impact this has on younger people competing in the housing market.

It also argues that greater adoption of modern methods of construction (MMC) is crucial to lowering the pressure for labour demand in the construction sector.

The NCPC says the broad implications for Ireland’s competitiveness arising out of the housing shortage resonate across the economy.

Advertisement

"The consequent impact – via both upward wage pressures and staffing challenges – present particular difficulties for the domestic SME sector," it claims.

"In some cases, private firms can find it necessary to purchase housing stock – leading to a reallocation of scarce capital and the assumption of new responsibilities outside of the scope of their day-to-day operations.

"Increasingly, housing has also been identified as an issue by the multinational enterprise sector."

Employment permits are part of the solution to increasing labour supply and key skills in the short-term, the research says.

"However, this solution increases pressures on our already over-constrained housing market, and we are also competing with other countries – particularly across the EU – which are also experiencing a severe shortage of construction workers," the paper claims.

"In the longer-term, it is therefore critical that we also increase emphasis on other solutions, such as ramping up the adoption of MMC and engaging more of our domestic workforce in construction."

The report also looks at the changing nature of those buying homes, including the increased role of so-called non-household buyers, such as private companies, charities and State institutions.

It found that while the activity of these buyers adds to the stock of available housing, the cost to employees of renting is often higher than for owner-occupied housing and gives less tenure guarantee than in other countries.

This, it claims, impacts negatively on competitiveness and constitutes another draw on limited supply of labour in the construction sector.

"The challenges are manifest particularly with regard to the labour market, by undermining worker mobility and staff retention alongside the risk of limiting Ireland’s capacity to attract and retain internationally mobile talent and skills," it concludes.


Follow MyHome.ie on WhatsApp for all the latest property news.

Subscribe to our weekly MyHome Living eZine today

Processing your request...

You are subscribed now!

<

  • Tags
  • construction
  • housing
  • featured
  • National Competitiveness and Productivity Council
  • NCPC
MyHome Content Studio
By MyHome Content Studio
Share this article
Facebook Share Twitter Share Linkedin Share Email Share Whatsapp Share

Helpful Links

Find your home on MyHome
Read more Articles
Calculate what you can afford to borrow
Welcome to the Retrofit Hub
Advertisement
Advertisement

Related News

Less than a third of mortgage holders have considered switching in the past year
MyHome Living

Less than a third of mortgage holders have considered switching in the past year

Oct 21, 2024
Decline in number of mortgages approved in May
MyHome Living

Decline in number of mortgages approved in May

Jun 28, 2024
Mortgage rates in Ireland fell slightly in April
Finance

Mortgage rates in Ireland fell slightly in April

Jun 12, 2024
European Central Bank cuts interest rates by 0.25%
Finance

European Central Bank cuts interest rates by 0.25%

Jun 06, 2024
Local authority home loan set for expansion
MyHome Living

Local authority home loan set for expansion

Jun 05, 2024
Frequent And Popular Searches
MyHome.ie Blog
Help
Jobs
About
Equality Guidelines
Brand Safety
Contact
Terms & Conditions
Cookie Policy
Privacy Policy
Digital Services Act
Sitemap
© Copyright MyHome.ie 2025
Advertisement