Quotes of the Week

Week starting 06.10.2008

"The harsh dose of reality from the global credit crunch may be hard to stomach, but it was long overdue. And we will emerge the better for it at the end of this particular tunnel." Con Power, Irish Independent, 10.10.2008

"Despite the reasonably strong showing from the most recent statistics on planning permissions, I expect completions in Dublin to fall in 2009 based on the trends in new home starts." Geoff Tucker, economist with Hooke and MacDonald, Irish Independent, 10.10.2008

"Absolutely, it was there to be got. People were too greedy. They wanted too much. When demand slows down, the prices come down. Things have softened globally but we can live with that and we can still make a profit. I'm looking at the long term . . . This will build out over the next five years." David Agar, The Irish Times, 10.10.2008

"The banks were all afraid of losing market share, they clearly contributed to the situation by wanting to do that." Rory O'Donnell chairman, O'Donnell Sweeney Eversheds, on blaming the banks for the implosion of Ireland's property market, Irish Independent, 09.10.2008

"The first sign of recovery from the economic situation that faces us today will be six months after property prices stabilise." Ivan Yates, Chairman of Celtic Bookmakers and a former senior Fine Gael minister, The Irish Times, 09.10.2008

"Hindsight is, of course, a wonderful thing. Now that we're looking back on the past 10 years, you'd have to wonder how we didn't see the bust coming." Anne Dooley, Director of Winthrop Group, O2 WM Businesswoman of the Year, Irish Independent, 08.10.2008

"I propose that, for a specific nominated and non-extendable period of time, and with the objective of getting this massive oversupply sold, purchasers should be permitted to reclaim a significant portion (75 per cent in my view) of the VAT on their new home." Ronan O'Driscoll, Savills Hamilton Osborne King, on the budget containing measures to boost the property market, The Irish Times, 06.10.2008

"Payments have slowed. We're getting paid; nobody's not paying us, they're just taking longer to pay us. You've just got to manage your cash carefully. It has an effect obviously... Cash is absolutely king at the moment to everybody." Guy Hollis, Managing Director CBRE, Sunday Tribune, 05.10.2008

"There'll have to be a serious write-down, there's no two ways around it. It's the elephant in the room. When the auditors go in, all hell is going to break loose. I think there will be carnage." Anonymous, on bankers and property valuations, Sunday Tribune, 05.10.2008

"Irish banks are owed €110bn by the property and construction sector. It accounts for €60 of every €100 that residents have on deposit. As 28% of all borrowings, it is significantly greater than the 25% construction proportion of bank lending in Japan when the banks crashed there in 1989." Justine McCarthy, Sunday Tribune, 05.10.2008