One in seven commercial properties vacant in Kildare
Of the main urban areas in Kildare analysed, Leixlip had the highest commercial vacancy rate at 15.9%
A substantial one in seven commercial properties (14.3%) in Kildare are vacant, according to the latest GeoDirectory Commercial Vacancy Rates Report.
This figure represents marginal increase (0.1%) from the same period in 2023, but it is still lower than the national average of 14.4 per cent.
Of the main urban areas in Kildare analysed, Leixlip had the highest commercial vacancy rate at 15.9%, while Maynooth had the lowest at 12.4% The highest rates continue to be found in the west of the country with Sligo having more than one-fifth (20.5%) of all their commercial properties vacant.
Donegal (19.4%), Galway (18.5%), Limerick (17.5%) and Leitrim (17.5%) rounded off the top five counties with the highest commercial vacancy rates.
Meath (9.8%) was the county with the lowest commercial vacancy rate in the country and the only county in the State with a vacancy rate below 10 per cent.
Wexford (10.6%), Cork (12.4%), Kerry (12.5%) and Cavan (12.5%) were the counties to record the next lowest commercial vacancy rates.
The most stricken town in the State was Ballybofey, Co Donegal where more than a third (33.6%) of all its commercial properties are vacant.
At the other end of the scale, Greystones, Co Wicklow (5.6%) and Carrigaline, Co Cork (7.2%) were the towns with the lowest vacancy rates.
Using NACE codes to classify commercial units by economic sector, the latest GeoDirectory Commercial Vacancy Rates Report has identified broad trends in the use of commercial units nationally. Of the 180,515 occupied units nationally, 154,217 have an assigned NACE code.
The analysis found that the number of commercial units classified by NACE codes has decreased by 1,370 units between Q2 2023 and Q2 2024. The majority of this decrease can be attributed to the services sector and the retail and wholesale sector, which declined by 625 and 514 units respectively.
Looking specifically at the accommodation and food services sector, a total of 22,211 commercial units in this sector were recorded in June 2024. This represents a decline of 270 units compared to the same period in 2023.
