Renting
Rental Market Statistics Ireland 2026
Ireland's rental market is in a state of structural crisis. With just 2,800 properties available to rent nationally and a vacancy rate of 0.8%, renters face the most constrained market on record. This page tracks supply, vacancy rates by county, tenancy length, notices of termination, and the ongoing exit of landlords from the market. Data sourced from the RTB and Daft Rental Report. Last updated 31 December 2025.
Supply
Rental Properties Available to Rent Over Time
The number of properties available to rent in Ireland has collapsed from approximately 8,500 in 2015 to just 2,800 in 2025. The introduction of Rent Pressure Zones in 2016, the temporary eviction ban in 2022 and its lifting in 2023 are marked as key policy inflection points.
Vacancy
Rental Vacancy Rate by County
A vacancy rate below 0.5% is considered a severe shortage, indicating near-zero choice for renters. Dublin (0.3%) and Cork (0.5%) are in acute shortage. Rural counties such as Leitrim (2.1%) and Donegal (1.8%) have higher vacancy rates but far fewer absolute units. Rows highlighted in red indicate counties with a severe shortage below 0.5%.
| County | Vacancy Rate ↑ | Available | YoY Change | vs National | Province |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dublin | 0.3% | 680 | -12.8% | -0.5 pp | Leinster |
| Cork | 0.5% | 310 | -10.2% | -0.3 pp | Munster |
| Galway | 0.6% | 185 | -9.8% | -0.2 pp | Connacht |
| Kildare | 0.6% | 142 | -11.4% | -0.2 pp | Leinster |
| Limerick | 0.7% | 148 | -9.1% | -0.1 pp | Munster |
| Wicklow | 0.7% | 98 | -10.5% | -0.1 pp | Leinster |
| Meath | 0.7% | 110 | -11.0% | -0.1 pp | Leinster |
| Waterford | 0.8% | 95 | -8.4% | +0.0 pp | Munster |
| Louth | 0.8% | 68 | -8.8% | +0.0 pp | Leinster |
| Wexford | 0.9% | 82 | -7.6% | +0.1 pp | Leinster |
| Kilkenny | 0.9% | 64 | -7.2% | +0.1 pp | Leinster |
| Clare | 1.0% | 74 | -6.9% | +0.2 pp | Munster |
| Tipperary | 1.0% | 78 | -6.2% | +0.2 pp | Munster |
| Westmeath | 1.0% | 58 | -6.5% | +0.2 pp | Leinster |
| Kerry | 1.1% | 92 | -5.8% | +0.3 pp | Munster |
| Laois | 1.1% | 48 | -5.4% | +0.3 pp | Leinster |
| Offaly | 1.1% | 44 | -5.8% | +0.3 pp | Leinster |
| Carlow | 1.2% | 36 | -5.2% | +0.4 pp | Leinster |
| Mayo | 1.4% | 62 | -4.2% | +0.6 pp | Connacht |
| Monaghan | 1.4% | 28 | -4.0% | +0.6 pp | Ulster |
| Sligo | 1.5% | 44 | -3.8% | +0.7 pp | Connacht |
| Cavan | 1.5% | 34 | -3.6% | +0.7 pp | Ulster |
| Roscommon | 1.6% | 38 | -3.2% | +0.8 pp | Connacht |
| Longford | 1.7% | 22 | -3.0% | +0.9 pp | Leinster |
| Donegal | 1.8% | 52 | -2.8% | +1.0 pp | Ulster |
| Leitrim | 2.1% | 18 | -1.4% | +1.3 pp | Connacht |
Tenancy
How Long Do People Rent For in Ireland?
Average tenancy lengths have been rising steadily since 2015, reflecting the increasing difficulty and cost of moving. Dublin renters stay in their properties longest — averaging 3.8 years in 2025 — compared to 3.2 years nationally. Rising tenancy lengths reduce effective market turnover and further compress available supply.
Evictions
Notices of Termination Issued Per Year
The majority of notices of termination in Ireland are issued because the landlord intends to sell the property — accounting for 45% of all notices in 2025. Rent arrears account for 18%, landlord or family use for 22%, and 15% are disputed at the RTB.
Landlord Supply
Registered Landlords Leaving the Market
The number of registered landlords in Ireland has fallen from approximately 170,000 in 2018 to around 115,000 by end-2025 — a loss of roughly 55,000 landlords in seven years. The rate of exit has accelerated since 2021, with landlords citing rent regulation complexity, RTB compliance costs, and unfavourable tax treatment as primary reasons for selling their rental properties.
The Shortfall
Ireland's Rental Supply Gap
Ireland requires an estimated 50,000 new rental units per year to meet demand from household formation, population growth, and international migration. With only 2,800 properties currently available, the annual shortfall stands at 47,200 units. At current rates of landlord exit and construction, analysts project the gap could widen to over 60,000 units by 2030 without significant policy intervention — including build-to-rent investment, tax reform for small landlords, and accelerated planning decisions for large-scale apartment developments.
Data Sources & Methodology
Rental supply and vacancy data is sourced from the RTB Residential Tenancies Register, which tracks all registered tenancies in Ireland. Notices of termination and landlord registration data are from the RTB Annual Report, published each year covering the prior calendar year. Rental price data and available-to-let listings are sourced from the Daft Rental Report, Ireland's primary residential rental market publication based on listings on Daft.ie. County-level vacancy rates are estimated from RTB tenancy register data cross-referenced with CSO housing stock figures. All data covers the period 2015–2025; last updated 31 December 2025.
Frequently Asked Questions
- How many rental properties are available in Ireland?
- There are approximately 2,800 properties available to rent nationally in Ireland as of end-2025. This represents a dramatic fall from around 8,500 units available in 2015 and reflects the acute supply shortage gripping the Irish rental market. Dublin alone accounts for roughly a quarter of all available units.
- What is the rental vacancy rate in Ireland?
- The national rental vacancy rate in Ireland is 0.8% — one of the lowest in Europe. A healthy rental market typically requires a vacancy rate of at least 3–5% to give tenants meaningful choice. Rates below 0.5% in cities such as Dublin and Cork signal an extreme supply emergency, with very few properties available at any given time.
- How long do people rent for in Ireland on average?
- The average tenancy length in Ireland is 3.2 years nationally, up from approximately 2.4 years in 2015. Dublin tenants stay even longer — averaging 3.8 years — reflecting the extreme difficulty and cost of moving to alternative rental accommodation. Rising tenancy lengths indicate that renters are unable to transition to home ownership or find alternative tenancies.
- Why is there a rental shortage in Ireland?
- Ireland's rental shortage has been driven by three compounding forces: landlords exiting the market at a rate of approximately 8.1% per year, a structural underbuilding of new rental units for over a decade, and a surge in demand from population growth, international migration and delayed home ownership. Rent pressure zone regulations and a prolonged eviction ban also had unintended consequences on supply as smaller landlords chose to sell their properties rather than re-let.
- How many landlords are leaving the market in Ireland?
- Registered landlords in Ireland have been declining at approximately 8.1% per year. The total number of registered landlords has fallen from around 170,000 in 2018 to approximately 115,000 by end-2025. The primary reasons cited are rent regulation complexity, the administrative burden of RTB compliance, capital gains tax pressure, and difficulty recovering properties from non-paying tenants.
- What is the average tenancy length in Ireland?
- The average tenancy length in Ireland is 3.2 years nationally as of 2025. Dublin tenants average 3.8 years, compared to 2.4 years nationally in 2015. The upward trend reflects the increasing cost and difficulty of moving to a new rental, driving tenants to remain in place longer even in unsuitable accommodation. This also reduces turnover and effective supply.