Property report is 'bad news for the rental sector' in Kilkenny

Property prices in Kilkenny have risen by €8,750 in the last year, according to the latest MyHome Property Price Report. 

The report for Q1 2026, in association with Bank of Ireland, shows that the median asking price for a property in the county is now €255,000. That means prices have risen by €5,000 over the quarter. 

Asking prices for a 3-bed semi-detached house in the county rose by €14,000 in the last year to €239,000. This means prices rose by €2,000 over the quarter. 

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Meanwhile, the asking price for a 4-bed semi-detached house in Kilkenny stayed flat over the last year at €310,000. This price fell by €7,500 over the quarter. 

There were 204 properties for sale in Kilkenny at the end of Q1 2026 - a decrease of 4% over the quarter. 

The average time for a property to go sale agreed in the county after being placed up for sale now stands at just under three months. 

The author of the report, Conall MacCoille, Chief Economist at Bank of Ireland, said that this quarter’s MyHome Report shows that asking prices rose by 1% in Q1 2026, a relatively sedate rise ahead of the summer trading season.

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He continues: "The annual rate of inflation slowed again, to 4.7% in Q1 2026, down for a fifth consecutive quarter from the 8.4% peak at end-2024.

"While this slowdown is evident in the mortgage market – particularly among first-time buyers – competition among buyers is still intense, with the median transaction price still 7% over the original asking price and the median property taking just one month to go sale agreed.

"A notable feature of the Irish housing market in 2026 will be elevated numbers of small landlords in the private rented sector leaving that market and selling their properties – the catalyst being new stricter regulations and the introduction of six-year minimum tenancies."

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Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) data show there were 10,612 notices-of-termination received in H2 2025, up almost 40% on the year before.

“These home sales may add significantly to market liquidity in 2026," MacCoille added.

"However, overall transaction levels could be further depressed by another contraction in the number of owner-occupiers moving homes.

"Despite last year’s home completions beating most observers’ expectations, we think these figures likely reflected apartment completions catching up after a weak 2025.

"As such, we will leave our forecast for 37-38,000 housing completions in 2026 broadly unchanged.

"We are also mindful the recent surge in Brent oil above $100 per barrel will feed through into build cost inflation – potentially adding another headwind to the construction sector.

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"The broad message from the MyHome asking price data is that the official measure of transaction price inflation, the CSO’s Residential Property Price Index (RPPI), should continue to slow from the 7% pace recorded in January.

"Stretched affordability now appears to be leading to more subdued gains in Irish house prices, closer to the current pace of pay growth. We expect the CSO’s official measure of transaction price inflation to slow to 4% by end-2026."

Joanne Geary, Managing Director of MyHome, asserted that "a predicted surge in small landlords exiting the private rental sector is clearly bad news for the rental sector as a whole."

"This could boost housing transactions this year by 3%, which could provide some much-needed liquidity in a very tight market," she said.

"As has been the case for some time now, more supply is critically important for our property market.

"We would hope to see homebuilding figures and overall investment in the sector continue to improve on the back of recent policy changes from the Government."

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