A number of auctioneers from across the country have warned that land coming to the market is being held back as Britain’s departure date from the EU looms closer.
With less than one month until Britain’s withdrawal from the EU, the levels of uncertainty are rising. Land agents nationwide have expressed concern that this uncertainty is leading to a holdback of land until after the withdrawal date.
Speaking with Irish Country Living, Roscommon-based land agent Thomas Cox said that numerous land sales are being delayed already this spring.
They are afraid if they bring land to the market pre-Brexit or immediately after it, it will have a knock-on effect on the price of the property going forward
“We have had a number of farms coming for sale that have had to be put back until after Brexit. Some would have come to the market earlier only for it. We normally start out sales in March, but it will be April before we go to the market with these.”
This sentiment was also echoed by Meath auctioneer Robert Nixon, who said there is an evident erring on the side of caution among vendors at the moment.
“People are sitting on the fence when it comes to Brexit. They are afraid if they bring land to the market pre-Brexit or immediately after it, it will have a knock-on effect on the price of the property going forward if we get a bad deal,” he explained.
In a general sense, the second half of 2018 saw a falloff in demand and enquiries for land, with numerous agents citing the uncertainty around Brexit as a direct result. This sentiment has continued into this year.
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