Quotes of the week

"Renting is the new buying... An ironic consequence of the recent failures of finance-fuelled capitalism may well be to undermine forever the foundational faith in private property ownership as a source of wealth and freedom. Though 'ironic' doesn't quite do justice to such an outcome... We're living in a whiplash economy, brought to a sudden stop by a wall of fear... This is Ireland's first middle class recession - professionals are joining unskilled workers on the dole queues... Expect a lot of people formally-known-as-middle-class to 'downshift' from the mortgage-indebtedness of home ownership to the liability-freedom of renting." (Gerard O'Neill, Chariman, Amárach Research)

"The BER system is a poorly-timed arrival in the Irish property sector. SEI (Sustainable Energy Ireland) has not told the public that hundreds of assessors are busily carrying out assessments despite not having completed the national test. In a market estimated to cost consumers in excess of €70,000,000 annually, these people have been told they can work away and sit the test later. It is unacceptable that a State body can deem a test necessary and then ignore its own requirements at will. Under the current system, we believe that many properties may carry incorrect certificates and that the only people to benefit will be lawyers who will have a field day, from which SEI cannot expect to be exempt." (Simon Ensor of Sherry FitzGerald; IAVI National Council)

With a surprisingly high number of apartments and houses now selling at up to 50 per cent below the original asking price, one can only wonder if there is much scope for further falls. The huge readjustment in values already seen means that for the first time in years many of the apartments and houses on the market can prove self-financing for investors. With interest rates virtually on the floor and likely to fall again in March, rents are already outstripping mortgage payments, particularly at the lower end of the market. (Jack Fagan, The Irish Times)

"They [the golden 10] haven't done anything wrong. They should be proud of what they did because they were supporting the bank in its hour of need, and it probably supported them in their hour of need. Why would you hide it?" (Ulick McElvaddy)

"We have in the last week noticed some fresh investor activity, attracted by the reductions in prices and the buoyancy of the rental market in urban locations with good transport links." (Ken MacDonald, Hooke & MacDonald)

"If you are in the situation where a repossession is likely an estate agent is definitely worth talking to, they may be able to help find buyers for your property, they will have a good idea of what price your property is worth and therefore what price may be required so that it is ‘priced to sell fast’ as a protracted sale may have you working against deadlines which the court system can dictate." (Karl Deeter, Irish Mortgage Brokers, 'A Repossession Guide for Irish Homeowners')

“It tells me either that people are opting not to purchase now, or else the scheme has acted as a spur, in conjunction with Government’s wider efforts in recent months [through the bank guarantee and, more recently, recapitalisation], to ensure that Irish financial institutions have access to the normal liquidity and funding which they need to operate their day-to-day business and that they are beginning to re-occupy their traditional space in the mortgage market." (Minister of State for Housing, Michael Finnernan, TD)

“SEI does not have the required number of trained and tested assessors to manage this programme. While it correctly states that all of its registered assessors have passed a training course exam, that’s only half the story. SEI has not told the public that hundreds of assessors are busily carrying out assessments despite not having completed the national test. Instead, it has issued hundreds of individuals with ‘provisional’ permission to carry out assessments – subject to them sitting the required national test later this year.” (Simon Ensor, Sherry FitzGerald, IAVI National Council)

Quotes of the week

“There is therefore likely to be an avalanche of new cases over the remainder of this year and next as we work through the recession. But we are now going through a recession of historic proportions. Many, if not most, borrowers are not to blame for their arrears“No-one gains from rows of empty shuttered houses. Patently, if the house is not going to sell, the order sought will not benefit either party. New market conditions demand new legal solutions.” Edmund Honohan, the master of the High Court.

“The agricultural land market has been propped up over the last 5 years by farmers and land owners who were replacing land as a result of development sales. So we believe that 2009 is likely to see further erosion in agricultural land values as there can be little doubt that the current crisis in development land will have a further knock-on affect on agricultural land values over the next couple of years”. Robert Ganly, Knight Frank.

“The number of properties that were on the market, but vendors withdrew, has increased by 46 per cent in January. In some cases, because interest rates have dropped, peoples’ holding costs have halved. Maybe people are happier to hold on to property now that pressure has eased.” Sherry FitzGerald MD Michael Grehan.

"Also required is a more timely data series tracking house price movements. While the PTSB/ESRI index is widely acknowledged as the most comprehensive price survey in Ireland, the lagging nature of the index means it is confusing for buyers during periods when property market cycles turn." Conor Gallagher, Douglas Newman Good.

"While the contraction in the investment area of the Irish economy has now firmly spread to all other sectors, the correction in construction activity, the instigator of the recession, shows little sign of easing," Goodbody economist Deirdre Ryan.

‘‘Based on the level of enquiries we’ve had, we expect to sell a good number of units but not all this weekend. I think the sales will happen over the next few weeks. From the huge number of phone calls we’ve received, it would appear people are responding to lower prices.” Ken MacDonald of Hooke & MacDonald.

Funky in Westport

Wow, you gotta admire the marketing style for this mixed-use development in Westport, called Westpoint. The website was produced by Proactive, and unfortunately beyond the homepage that eye-catching design is not very prominent and it becomes a fairly stardard presentation.