First Time Buyer writes:
Are developers our equivalent to [oil producer cartel] OPEC, hoarding land and keeping output to a minimum in order to drive up prices and their profits?
They are holding out in the hope that the next Government will reduce taxes and levies or put pressure on the Central Bank to relax its mortgage lending rules.
The result is that buyers are being forced to seek housing beyond the city and reviving the uunsustainable boom-era practice of long-distance commuting.
The evidence; asking prices are dropping in Dublin but increasing in the rest of the country.
Builders hoarding land to fuel profit (Independent.ie)
Property trends may lead to ‘unsustainable’ commutes – ESRI (Irish Times)
Rollingnews
Sponsored Link
Use it or loose it planning permissions.
Annual fee on land banking.
@Panty Could you please stop annoying people with your sensible submissions! This is Ireland and its not like the things you have mentioned havent been thought of by Government, measures like you mentioned are not implemented because Governemnt looks after the rich and not the individual
Apologies.. Woo look, shiny stuff.
They’re coming in from 2019
Harold’s Cross is full of cranes; one giant block is already being built (including culverting a beautiful little local stream), and planning permission is on the go for another huge block, in an area naked of facilities like local grocery shops, butchers, bakers, library, cycle lanes, etc.
What’s your point?
5 story blocks when they should be 10, also there’s a large supervalu there, 10 min bus (2 bus lines) to city, how exactly is that naked of facilities?
It has been suggested for years now that a form of tax on derelict and vacant sites in core urban zones should have some sort of tax to encourage development. This is long overdue, but at the same time some thought needs to be given as to other barriers to building, i.e. the prohibitive Govt duties in building a house.
I read it’s up 20% which sounds a bit mad to me given the housing shortage in the capital…
+1 for use-it-or-lose-it planning permissions; there’s a fine for ‘derelict sites’, administered by local councils, but nothing like Paris’s tax on unused apartments.
Oh the derelict site tax is a joke. In 2012 Louth CoCo had 55 derelict site and four years later they still have 55, Meath also had something like 8 derelict site in the whole county for years. The key thing about a derelict or a half built house is that there was a court ruling stating that the house can be considered as completed even if the materials required to complete it are “off-site”. I live beside a place that has gone uncompleted for the best part of 10 years and the county council stated and I quote “A house like any other house”
wow, I did not know that. How stupid….
Hear, hear!
+1 for use-it-or-lose-it planning permissions
there is a massive constitutional obstacle to use it or lose it and derelict site policies, our constitution, or at least those who interpret it on our behalf, strongly favours the rights of property owners
I see that now… Optimus’ above comment…
Property tax based on site-value would have a similar effect without the potential constitutional hurdle.
Take it off the hoarders and use it towards the common good.
Not strictly related to the topic above but shows the mindset of certain developers. I have wanted to comment on many articles on the Irish times and Independent about it but for some reason haven’t been able to on those articles. Anyway, went to view a set of houses recently and spoke to the estate agent about when the next set of new houses would be released in this development.
He openly said that the developer was waiting until after the election to release them as he felt the central bank would be pressured to relax the deposit rules and he would be able to release them at a higher price as people would be able to get a bigger mortgage. This is for the exact same houses and are already nearly at completion. So nothing to do with supply and demand. Simply that people would be able to borrow more and he would be able to get more for the houses. I found it incredibly worrying, especially with so many people clamoring for them to be relaxed. They are harsh but they are working as they are tempering the price that developers can charge.
I couldn’t agree with you more. This is a Mexican standoff. Developers don’t want houses priced in relation to real world wages, they want the gap to be bridged with cheap credit like in the good old days. We must resist this but with FF back in charge I fear were going to go backwards.
Huh? OPEC aren’t keeping output to a minimum. Sure didn’t the CEO of one big oil company recently say every swimming pool will have to be filled with oil soon due to the global glut? You really gotta watch yer analogies these days.
I don’t think it’s a stretch to draw parallels between the current practice of faceless speculators letting our cities fester and go to poo for potential profit and what was going on 100+ years ago, absent landlords letting the place and the people they lorded over fester and deteriorate. Use it or loose it local tax would soften their cough.
what a load of rubbish!!!! You can buy 2 bed apartments in dublin today for150K!! The build cost of the apartment is 270K. How or why would a developer build to make a loss!!! When prices go up to a level there is a profit to be made builders will build to make a profit not a loss. And the only way to sort the house and rental crisis is to give developer section 23 again to build urban apartments.
You might not like what I said but facts are facts!!!
And if you want to make a ball of cash buy 2 beds at 150K with rental income of 1250 per month
Oh. You’re back.
You weren’t missed.
Forgive me for interrupting Kieran NYC, but to me tomkildare sounds like a buddy of yours.
A soulmate.
(I won’t say ‘comrade’, lest I ruffle two feathers with one stoned observation but you get the gist.)
Why are you fighting with him?
He’s your mate.
You haven’t got many mates.
It doesn’t make sense.
Keep talking to yourself in the newspaper threads.
You’re your only audience.
Nice one sǝɯǝɯʇɐpɐq, looking at that photo the phrase “misery loves company” comes to mind..
Don’t pay any attention to Kieran, he’s upset because inda lost de election….
Thank you realPolithicks.
I was very surprised at the amount of views meself, considering I originally posted the picture after 7pm. and that most people will now look at this version, taking away from the hit-count of the original post which can be found at http://imgur.com/tqPjnIW
It means nothing to me.