Rents across the Greater Mayo area have increased by 9.5 percent over the past year.

Although this figure is slightly above the national increase (7.3 percent), price growth has slowed significantly compared to last year, when rents in Mayo rose 24.3 percent between the second quarter of 2022 and 2023.

The latest rental price report from Daft.ie shows that the average cost of renting a property in Mayo is currently €1,338, an increase of 0.8 percent on the previous quarter.

Today, Monday 26 August, there are 42 rental properties available in Mayo, up from 19 during the same period last year. However, like last year, there are none available in Ballinrobe.

Rent prices for a one-bedroom apartment in Mayo rose by 3.7 percent to €829, for a two-bedroom house by 0.7 percent to €986 and for a three-bedroom house by 3.7 percent to €1,151.

The cost of renting a four-bedroom house in the county rose 2.2 percent to €1,248, while the average rent for a five-bedroom house rose 2.8 percent to €1,340.

According to the Daft.ie report, the rental cost of a two-bedroom house in Mayo is €488 higher than the average monthly mortgage payment for a similar property (€498).

Ronan Lyons, author of the Daft.ie report, said that while the increase in property supply was encouraging, realistically this was “just the beginning of the journey”.

Comparing rental prices in Mayo County with pre-Covid levels, Daft.ie reported an 83 percent increase.

From a regional perspective, market rents in the Connacht-Ulster area increased by 0.9 percent in the second quarter of 2024.

The report points to 14 consecutive quarters in which nationwide rents have increased and the 45th time in the last 48 quarters.

“Ideally, after more than a decade of rental housing shortages, we would be talking about a gradual spread of the solution, not a return to the core problem. The solution is a new supply of rental housing in large quantities in every single rental market in the country,” Lyons concluded.

This comes after Castlebar-based district councillor Harry Barrett highlighted the case of a family of five who had become homeless due to the lack of rental accommodation in the town. Barrett said this family would suffer as a result of the “failure to develop an appropriate housing strategy in this district over the last 30 years”.

Major measures are needed to address the enormous vacancy and neglect in this city and district, but not enough is being done to address it.

Speaking to The Mayo News today (Monday), Councillor Barrett said this was “not a reflection” of Mayo County Council.

He added: “They need more funding from the central government and they can’t conjure up houses or builders.”