New tenants forking out ‘average 1,464 euro in rent each month’

New tenants are paying an average rent of 1,464 euro per month, according to new figures published by the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB).

The average rent for new tenancies increased by 8.2% compared to last year, figures show.

The RTB published the Rent Index report on Thursday for the period April to June 2022.

This Rent Index is based on actual rents paid under 12,701 private tenancies which were newly registered with the RTB during that period.

This was a decrease of 16% on the number of registered tenancies used in the sample in the second quarter of 2021 which had 15,048 newly registered tenancies.

The figures showed that Dublin, and the Greater Dublin Area (GDA), accounted for over half of all new tenancy agreements registered during those three months. Almost 60% of new tenancies registered were for apartments.

Nationally, the Rent Index showed that the standardised average rent in newly registered tenancies was 1,464 euro per month, which is an increase of nine euro compared to the first quarter, which stood at 1,455 euro.

The quarterly growth rate represented a 0.6% increase. On a yearly basis, rents in these newly registered tenancies increased by 8.2%.

The standardised average rent in new tenancies for houses in Ireland during the second quarter stood at 1,457 euro per month, which was an increase of 1.4% compared to the first quarter and a rise of 8.4% year-on-year.

The standardised average rent in new tenancies for apartments stood at 1,497 euro per month, which was an increase of 8.5% on second quarter 2021.

Independently analysed by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI), the RTB Rent Index report is based on the total number of private tenancies newly registered with RTB each quarter.

The index provides rental indicators based on actual rents paid for new tenancies in the private rental sector in Ireland.

The Rent Index report is based on new tenancies in existing rental properties; new properties being let for the first time, and new tenancies in properties that have not been let in the previous two years.

It showed that in the second quarter of 2022, the level of standardised average rents in new tenancies in Dublin stood at 2,011 euro per month compared to 1,130 euro per month outside the capital.

The standardised average rent in new tenancies in the GDA stood at 1,438 euro, while it was 1,091 euro outside Dublin.

Year-on-year price increases in rents for new tenancies were lowest at 0.4% in the GDA and highest at 8.8% in Dublin. Year-on-year increases in rents for new tenancies was 8.3% for outside the GDA.

The standardised average rent in new tenancies for houses was highest at 2,253 euro per month in Dublin and lowest at 1,125 euro per month outside the GDA.

The standardised average rent in new tenancies for apartments was highest at 1,979 euro per month in Dublin and lowest at 1,059 euro per month outside the GDA.

The lowest annual growth rates across the regions, for both houses and apartments, were recorded in the GDA, at +3% and -2.5% respectively.

The highest standardised average rent in new tenancies was in Dublin at 2,011 euro per month, while the lowest monthly rents were in Donegal, where the standardised average rent in new tenancies stood at 783 euro per month.

Fourteen counties had standardised average rents in new tenancies above 1,000 euro per month including Carlow, Cork, Dublin, Galway, Kildare, Kilkenny, Laois, Limerick, Louth, Meath, Waterford, Westmeath, Wexford and Wicklow.

The lowest yearly growth in the standardised average rent for new tenancies was in Wicklow where rents fell by 2%.

Kildare had the second lowest yearly growth rate, with rents falling by 1.1%.

The county with the fastest growing standardised average rent in new tenancies was Leitrim which reported 20% year-on-year growth.

Fourteen counties had a yearly growth rate in new tenancy rents above 10%.

Niall Byrne, RTB director, said the report showed that the national rent level for new tenancies across the country had continued to rise.

“We also see a continued decrease in the number of tenancies registered with the RTB in the quarter,” he added.

“These results are likely due to a mixture of factors, including the continued limited supply of rental accommodation.

“It is important to state that these results are for new tenancies only and therefore these insights relate to only a small part of the private rental sector in Ireland.

“Over the last 12 months, there have been some important changes for the RTB and for the sector.

“With the introduction of annual registration on April 4 2022, and of our new tenancy registration system in November last year, the data analysis and reporting capabilities of the RTB will be improving significantly as we move into 2023.”