New home completions rose marginally in the third quarter but the figures were still well below Government targets.
According to the Central Statistics Office (CSO), there were 9,235 new dwelling completions in July, August, and September this year, a rise of 4 per cent on the same three months last year.
This brought total completions for the year to date to 24,325, an increase of 13 per cent on the same period in 2024.
Driving the increase were apartment completions, up 30 per cent when compared with the same period in 2024.
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To improve the viability of apartment construction, the Government has changed design standards, revamped the State’s system of rent controls and more recently cut the VAT rate attached to new apartment sales.
The Coalition has set a target of building 303,000 homes between 2025 and 2030, when its term in office is due to end. The headline target would mean delivering an average of 50,500 homes per year.
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The latest figures suggest the year-end total for 2025 will be well short of this. The Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) is predicting in the region of 35,000 completions.
“After a promising second quarter, there was a muted start to home building in the second half of the year, with only a 4 per cent increase in the number of home completions in Q3 2025,” Trevor Grant, chairperson of Irish Mortgage Advisors, said.
“We need an exponential increase in the number of new homes being built in Ireland,” he said.
“Second-hand home stock levels have fallen to record lows and not enough new homes are coming on board,” Mr Grant said.
“The biggest driver of Irish house price inflation is the shortage of homes coupled with the pent-up demand for housing and an expanding population,” he added.
The latest CSO figures indicated almost half of completions (49 per cent) in the third quarter emanated from scheme dwellings, 34 per cent were apartments, and 17 per cent were single dwellings.
The number of completions was up 35 per cent in the mideast (Kildare, Louth, Meath, and Wicklow) region in the third quarter, compared with same quarter last year.
