Land Report: supply and price up in Limerick

It was a busy year in the property market in Limerick last year. Supply of land was up and price was up too.

Limerick landowners put 65 farms on the market, an increase on the 63 of the previous year.

The total area of land for sale was 3,557ac, up from 3,120ac. The holdings were evenly split between under 40ac and over.

Some 24 were residential, the other 41 non-residential.

Private treaty

Limerick landowners generally opted for sale by private treaty. Fifty-seven of the 65 were offered this way, five by auction and three by tender.

All but one of the five offered by auction were sold. In all, 36 of the 63 farmers put on the market were sold before year end.

Average price was €9,983/ac, up from €9,739/ac the year before.

Price per acre ranged from €4,423/ac to a top of €24,242/ac. The total value of land sold in the county last year was €18.7m.

Dairy farmers have been the most active land buyers in Limerick in recent years – that continued to be the case in 2020 as they bought over one-third of all farms put up for sale.

Higher prices

One of the higher prices made in the county was for 20.3ac at Ballybrown, Knockaderry. It made €270,000 at auction, or €13,289/ac.

But more typical were two other auction properties.

One was 58ac at Ballykennedy, Ballingarry, which made €8,620/ac, the other 126ac at Ballinamona, outside Hospital which made €9,761/ac.

Another point of interest was that nine farms of over 100ac were put up for sale of which seven sold and price averaged approximately €8,500/ac.

*Based on 36 transactions