Dublin

Dublin’s housing market in 2025 is marked by surging prices, constrained supply, and intense demand. About 83% of Dublin home buyers are owner-occupiers, with a substantial majority (66%) being first-time buyers. This suggests approximately 17% of people are landlords or investors, and recent estimates place Dublin’s renter population at roughly 60%, with 40% being homeowners; these percentages reflect longstanding patterns where homeownership has fallen in the capital compared to the national average.

The median price to buy an apartment in Dublin is approximately €6,300 per sqm, based on average sales prices and typical apartment sizes. For renters, the median rental price for a one-bedroom apartment is around €1,800 per month, translating to about €36 per sqm monthly based on standard unit sizes.

Publicly owned housing (including both public and social housing) represents around 10% to 12% of Dublin’s housing stock. Public housing typically refers to housing owned and managed by local authorities, while social housing also includes dwellings run by Approved Housing Bodies and can consist of homes leased from private landlords. Most new "social housing" provided in Dublin now is acquired via "turnkey" purchases from private developers rather than directly built by the state.

The market remains highly competitive, vacancy rates are under 5%, and rising costs continue to exacerbate housing affordability challenges for renters and buyers alike.

Dublin’s housing crisis in 2025 is severe, marked by rapid price increases, extremely low vacancy, and a significant shortfall in available homes. Home prices in Dublin have risen by over 12% year-on-year, with the average property now selling for approximately €460,000, and the median rent for a one-bedroom apartment commonly exceeding €1,800 per month. The vacancy rate is critically low at around 1%, indicating almost no available properties in many areas. Supply cannot keep pace with demand: only about 3,500 second-hand homes are for sale in the metropolitan region, while experts estimate a deficit of around 150,000 apartments citywide.

The crisis has broad and deep social impact. Young adults, those on lower incomes, and families face some of the greatest barriers to securing stable housing. Discrimination also disproportionately affects lone parents, people with disabilities, and migrants. For example, lone mothers head 60% of homeless families, and people with disabilities are highly over-represented among the homeless population. Children are acutely affected, making up nearly a third of those without stable accommodation. The elderly are increasingly impacted as population demographics shift. High costs have forced a significant share of residents, regardless of age or background, to consider leaving Dublin or even Ireland altogether. Overall, the crisis has deepened social inequality and undermined housing security for tens of thousands across the city.

Dublin’s city administration is addressing affordable and sustainable housing through a multi-faceted strategy centered on accelerating social and affordable home delivery, expanding land zoning, and governance reforms. The city aims to deliver over 2,000 new social and affordable homes in 2025 and is developing a 10-year housing and land strategy. Targets are aligned with revised government guidelines, permitting Dublin to zone enough land for up to 8,200 homes annually, with a strong policy focus on prioritizing brownfield urban areas and avoiding urban sprawl.

Key programmes include affordable housing initiatives under the “Housing for All” plan, encompassing Affordable Purchase and Cost Rental schemes. These make newly built homes available below market price, often via an equity-sharing agreement where buyers purchase at a reduced price in return for the city council holding a percentage stake. The city is also pushing for turnkey acquisitions from private developers, partnerships with Approved Housing Bodies, and new Rental Accommodation and Social Leasing schemes, particularly targeting vulnerable and homeless populations.

Additional measures involve streamlining the planning process, extending the duration of existing permissions, and establishing a new Housing Activation Office to unblock development obstacles. Environmental sustainability and energy efficiency are embedded in new housing standards. Overall, Dublin’s approach combines land policy, direct provision, regulatory reforms, and partnerships to increase the supply of affordable and sustainable homes while aiming for system-level improvements and transparency in delivery.

Housing cooperatives in Dublin represent a **small but expanding segment** of the city’s housing landscape, managed primarily by Co-operative Housing Ireland (CHI). CHI oversees around 5,500 homes nationwide, a substantial portion in Dublin, but **cooperative housing remains below 2% of Dublin’s total housing stock**. The sector has grown by approximately 50% since 2011, mainly through partnerships with Dublin City Council and innovative approaches such as acquiring unfinished developments and building mixed-tenure schemes.

The focus of Dublin’s cooperatives is on **creating sustainable, affordable homes with active resident participation**. Notable recent projects include new developments in Cherry Orchard and Drumcondra. Despite this growth, cooperative housing is still a niche part of the overall supply, limited by land availability, funding, and regulatory barriers.

Policy support for cooperative housing is increasing, reflected in city and national government activities such as releasing public land, offering technical assistance, and new legislative initiatives (notably the Co-operative Societies Bill) to modernize governance and simplify cooperative formation. These measures are part of broader “Housing for All” strategies, which aim to integrate cooperative approaches with other affordable and cost-rental models.

In summary, while cooperative housing is growing and enjoys rising policy attention, its overall footprint in Dublin remains marginal amid ongoing supply and affordability challenges.