19
Oct |
Waterford by-pass set to open
The Waterford city by-pass is due to open today, three and a half years after work started and ten months ahead of schedule. The by-pass includes a 465m cable-stayed bridge over the River Suir. The bridge (as yet unnamed) is the longest in the State.
The road has been described as the most important infrastructural development in Waterford in living memory.
Motorcycles using the new bridge will have to pay a toll of €1, cars €1.90, coaches and small trucks €3.40 and up to €6.10 for trucks with four or more axles.
It said approximately 20 minutes will be saved in travelling at peak times from Rosslare to Cork when the by-pass is used, and it is expected 14,000 vehicles will use it every day - reducing traffic through Waterford city by 30%.
Campaigners have been looking for a second river crossing in Waterford city for nearly half a century.
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09
Apr |
Ireland’s only dedicated mobile phone advertising and marketing agency Partners with
Coldwell Banker Estate Agency in PropertyText Service
Home seekers can now access a full colour brochure on their mobile phone, of properties being let or sold through Coldwell Banker Ireland. By simply texting a short code that appears at the bottom of Coldwell Banker’s signs or property advertisements, full details of the property including colour photographs are immediately delivered to the person requesting the information.
“Our trial tests were enthusiastically received by home seekers. Our technology allows an unlimited amount of detail to be provided instantly. Previous text services only allowed for about 25 words to be delivered with no picture content.
I know when I was house hunting I had walked or driven past homes for sale that I would loved to have been able to access immediate details about. PropertyText now provides this information instantly and an enquirer no longer has to wait for an estate agent’s office to open or go home and power up a computer, that’s if they have that facility available to them!” Said Mark Flanagan M.D. of iWord Ltd.
“Home hunters like it because they can get the information they need immediately. Our clients like it because they know that full details of their home are now available 24/7 for prospective purchasers as everybody carries a mobile phone with them. Our agents love it because the property brochure is automatically sent back by text and as the mobile phone number is stored they can also follow up and engage at a suitable time with a very high quality lead.
There are also the huge savings to our clients and agents on advertising costs. A large (and expensive) picture advertisement is no longer required as readers can view pictures of the property inside and out when they send a text of the property’s code to the number 57188. Now, with the same advertising budget, our agents can promote more and more properties which is a win-win for them, their clients and home hunters” added Nick Hughes of Coldwell Banker Ireland.
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31
Mar |
Mortgage Lending In Ireland Slows
The rate of mortgage lending slowed in February, according to new figures from the Central Bank published on March 31, 2009. The amount of money lent for new mortgages rose by €58m after a much stronger rise of €350m in January. The Central Bank said the annual rate of increase in residential mortgages fell to 4.9% in February from 5.4% in January. The fall came despite lower interest rates and a 2.1% fall in house prices in the first two months of 2009.
Meanwhile, The Irish Auctioneers and Valuers Institute has urged the Government to 'urgently' find a way of dealing with the banks' toxic debts. In its pre-Budget submission, the IAVI's President Edward Carey said that until the banking sector comes forward and declares its hand and honestly sets out those of its debts that are recoverable and those that are not, the economy will remain in a stranglehold. He explains that without knowing the full extent of these bad debts, funding from international investors remains at a standstill, stopping the flow of money into small firms and the first time home buyers' market.
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18
Mar |
Letting Boom
The property lettings market is undergoing an unprecedented boom in Ireland. With sales sluggish, the number of quality rental properties on the market shows no sign of abating. Coldwell Banker Ireland has the experience to quickly match landlords and tenants and ensure that all parties are satisfied.
There is strong downward pressure on rents, with Daft reporting "the year-on-year rate of decline in the Daft.ie National Rent Index accelerated from -3.2% in Q3 2008 to -12.2% in Q4 2008. The January 2009 rate of decline stood at -13%. Supply is outpacing demand." Further, Daft foresees a seismic shift in the Irish attitude to renting: "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."
So, the population is declining due to emigration. There is reduced availability of mortgage finance. There are thousands of new properties for rent and there has been an explosion in buy-to-let investments. The Irish lettings market is in the middle of a perfect storm. Coldwell Banker Ireland understands the market and the forces at work. If you want to maximise your returns on letting property investments, call us today.
For more, see the Daft Property Report at http://www.daft.ie/report/index.daft.
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11
Mar |
Overseas Property Auction
A Dublin auction of over 80 overseas properties managed only a single sale (29.01.09). Coldwell Banker Ireland is part of a global real estate network so, if you need to sell an overseas property, you need to talk to us first. |
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