INFLATION OF RENT prices has slowed, but so has an increase in supply, making for little improvements to the crisis in the near future.

That is according to the latest Rental Report by Daft.ie, which shows average market rents rode by 0.6% between December and March 2024.

While this marks the thirteenth consecutive quarter in which rents nationwide have increased, the increase at the start of this year is the smallest in that run.

The number of homes available to rent on the open market remains low. As of 1 May, just over 2,000 homes were available to rent, effectively unchanged on the same date a year previously and well below half the 2015-2019 average of almost 4,400.

Availability had almost doubled between late 2022 and late 2023 but has fallen considerably since the start of the year, the report states.

Average rents in Q1 of 2024 were

• Dublin: €2,395, up 2.5% since Q1 2023
• Cork city: €1,870, up 8.0%
• Limerick city: €1,933, up 17.5% 
• Galway city: €1,861, up 5.0% 
• Waterford city: €1,495, up 6.9% 
• Rest of the country: €1,467, up 6.8%

Ronan Lyons, Associate Professor in Economics at Trinity College Dublin and author of the Daft.ie Report, said improvements in the availability of homes appears to have “stalled”, which will likely cause further rent increases.

“Without additional increases in rental supply, any pressure on rents is likely to be upward in nature, further straining affordability for those on regular incomes,” he said.

“For that reason, policymakers must develop a thorough understanding of rental supply dynamics ahead of a detailed plan on dramatically increasing rental supply over the rest of the decade.”

However, Lyons added that the slow in rental inflation is positive.