PIC: Renting in Ireland has increased by 9% in the last year, according to Daft.ie

The national average rent between October and December was €979.

Nationwide rent rose by an average of 9% in 2015, according to a report by Daft.ie. It turns out that rent inflation has impacted counties outside of Dublin the most, but the capital is particularly suffering from from a lack of renting availability. Cork city has seen rents 15.4% higher than this time last year, while renters in Galway city have suffered a 13.3% rise. Meanwhile, Limerick rates stands at 12.4% and Waterford at 10.3%. Also, as of February 1, 2016, rent availability is at its lowest on record. Dublin has been massively affected in this category, with only 1,400 properties available to rent at present; that's less than a fortnight's supply. It's not much better nationally, as only 3,600 rental homes are currently on the market. When you compare that to the 16,000 plus options available five years ago, it really is startling. Speaking about the findings, Ronan Lyons, economist and author of the Daft Report, said: “Ahead of the election, there is no sign of any improvement in the extreme lack of rental accommodation throughout the country, particularly in Dublin. "The shortage of accommodation was first identified in the Daft.ie Report in late 2010, ahead of the last election. "Unfortunately, at the time, the political focus was on legacy issues related to ghost estates and negative equity. "Hopefully, the new Government will focus on taking the necessary steps to increase availability of homes to rent early in its term of office.” Year-on-year change in rents – major cities, Q4 2015

• Dublin: €1,435, up 8.2%
• Cork: €978, up 15.4%
• Galway: €887, up 13.3%
• Limerick: €778, up 12.4%
• Waterford: €673, up 10.3%

  For those interested, the full report is available here.