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Tuesday February 6, 2008

Minister O'Keeffe Announces 78,000 New Housing Completions In 2007

"The adjustment that is now taking place in the housing market involves some pain, but there will also be gains, particularly in terms of better housing affordability and also reduced pressure on cost competitiveness in the overall economy, which is vital to our continued success."

Speaking last week at the Irish Banking Federation's Mortgage Conference, Batt O'Keeffe, T.D., Minister for Housing, Urban Renewal and Developing Areas, announced that the total number of houses and apartments completed in 2007 was 78,027.

This figure, while higher than some predictions, is close to the outcome anticipated in the Construction Industry Review produced for the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government last year.

There were 17,725 houses and apartments completed in Dublin, and 24,974 were built in the Greater Dublin Area (Dublin, Kildare, Meath and Wicklow) in 2007.

The fewest number of new homes were built in Leitrim, which saw only 975 constructed in the past year, and Monaghan and North Tipperary, where just 1,042 and 1041 were built.

25% of the houses built in 2007 were single houses, with the remainder developed across schemes of varying sizes. Apartments accounted for 24.1% of all new completions in 2007. 

Commenting on recent house market trends, Minister O'Keeffe said "the adjustment that is now taking place in the housing market involves some pain, but there will also be gains, particularly in terms of better housing affordability and also reduced pressure on cost competitiveness in the overall economy, which is vital to our continued success."

The Minister urged the construction industry and the mortgage sector to consider the strength of underlying demand for housing and positive factors such as improved affordability, boosted by Government measures such as significant increase in mortgage interest relief and stamp duty reform.

Minister O'Keeffe also noted a number of positive findings in recent market surveys carried out for the IBF, including reports that first time buyers' market share is holding up well, that they tend to regard their purchase as a home for the medium or long term and that the mortgage market is now growing at a more sustainable level.

On this point, the Minister expressed a hope that "lessons have been learned from the effects of recent trends in housing market activity and mortgage lending".

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