When we venture outside of Trinity’s walls these days, whether to enjoy the sun in St Stephens Green or to hastily procure another life-preserving coffee, we find tangible evidence of Ireland’s economic recovery. Regardless of one’s views about the nature of that recovery, it is surely more welcome than the absence of one. Molesworth Street alone now has three major construction projects underway, each of which provides gainful employment and attracts further commercial activity to the city. But the welcome return of such projects is still failing to change the city’s supply of housing in a manner consistent with the growth we hope to see in the future.
Last week, Daft.ie released its latest report on the Irish housing market. It continues to find a chronic shortage of housing supply, particularly in the Dublin city centre rental market, that pushes up yearly rents at seemingly extortionate rates. Trinity’s own Ronan Lyons, author of the Daft report, points to construction costs that are “out of line with average incomes” as a cause of the supply problem.
But we must also consider the extent to which height restrictions cap the city’s potential housing supply. As recently as last year, submissions from the National Transport Authority and the HSE called for greater flexibility for these regulations, under which city centre buildings with over 16 residential stories are only allowed in The Docklands, George’s Quay, and in the vicinity of Connolly and Heuston rail stations. These somewhat arbitrary restrictions undoubtedly hinder the city’s potential growth.
There is clearly a balance to be struck in preserving the culture and aesthetic of this city against the advances of our soulless capitalist overlords. But at the moment we remain stuck too far in the opposite direction. Young people struggle with the rising cost of living and have good reason to look abroad when starting their careers.
If we agree that the Dublin rent situation is unacceptable, or at the very least undesirable, then increasing the supply of rentable properties should be the central theme of any proposed solution. Rent control measures alleviate financial strain in the short term but only help those who can find housing. Artificially low rent further exacerbates the supply problem by lowering the financial incentive to rent a property or to build new rental housing. The sustainability of Dublin’s growth will rest on the government’s ability to think beyond such measures and to plan for long-term success.
