THE HOUSING STATS in Census 2011 have thrown up all sorts of interesting tidbits – including the fact that the average weekly rent fell by only one per cent between 2006 and 2011 (see further below for rentals).

Meanwhile, detached housing remained the single most popular type of dwelling in Ireland, though Census 2011 showed that apartments and flat increased by 27 per cent to 150,000 units since 2006.

Semi-detached houses increased by 14.6 per cent, while the number of bed-sits in Ireland fell by 35 per cent to 5,700 by April 2011. Seven out of ten bed-sits were located in Dublin, according to Census 2011.

At the time of the census, there were just under 1.65 million occupied permanent housing units – up 13 per cent, or 187,100 units, on Census 2006. More than a quarter of the occupied dwellings recorded in Census 2011 were built in the previous ten years, while another third of the dwellings were built before 1970.

Co Laois showed the greatest increase in the percentage of occupied flats and apartments in purpose-built blocks with a 116 per cent jump to 976 from the 451 recorded in 2006. Over that same period, South Dublin’s occupancy for the same type of properties rose by more than three-quarters (up from 5,961 to 10,583). Co Meath saw a 71 per cent increase from 2,277 to 3,897.

Meanwhile, at the other end of the spectrum, Limerick county saw the greatest fall in occupancy in flats and apartments in purpose-built blocks, down 12 per cent to 1,670. South Tipperary registered a 9 per cent drop to 646, while Roscommon recorded the smallest increase, at 3 per cent to 379.

Home ownership and renting

Nearly 475,000 households in Ireland were renting in April 2011, a significant increase on the 300,000 recorded in 2006. Again Laois tops the list for the highest increase, with 88 per cent more households renting than had rented in 2006. Fingal saw the second-highest percentage increase at 88 per cent.

Main stats on renting in Ireland:

• The average weekly rent in Ireland fell by 1 per cent since 2006, to €136.
• Households who were living in private rented flats and apartments were paying the highest rents on census night 2011, at an average of €187 a week
• Over 18,800 households were paying more than €300 a week in rent
• Households who rented a bedsit from a private landlord paid the lowest average rent – €110 a week
• The highest percentage of people who rent their home live in the Dublin area and in Co Longford
• Almost seven in ten households who rent in Ireland are renting from a private landlord
• One in three households who rent do so from a local authority
• Seven per cent of rental properties were built before 1919, while over one-third were built between 2001 and 2011

Note: The CSO says that the census question regarding renting and owning was simplified for Census 2011 and so comparisons with 2006 must be treated with caution.

Here are the highlights of Census 2011 >

Census 2011: Over half the population lives in Leinster >

14.5 per cent of dwellings in Ireland vacant in Census 2011 >