67.9% of empty commercial properties in Longford vacant over three years

Longford’s commercial vacancy rate stood at 15.1% in Q4 2017, representing an increase of 0.3pp compared to the same period in 2016 while the latest research also reveals that 67.9% of the vacant commercial address points in the county have been empty for over three years.
Overall, the national commercial vacancy rate in Ireland dropped slightly from 13.5% in Q4 2016 to 13.3% in Q4 2017.

The report highlights the fact that commercial activity remains concentrated on the East coast of Ireland, with the Greater Dublin Area accounting for 33.2% of the overall national stock. This is in stark contrast to Connacht and Ulster, with these provinces only accounting for 13.7% and 7.8% of the national stock respectively.

In Dublin, the commercial vacancy rate fell to 12.4%, a drop of 1.3pp compared to last year, with 16 of the 22 postal districts recording a vacancy rate below the national average of 13.3%. Modest reductions were recorded in Leitrim (-0.8pp), Donegal (-0.5pp), Limerick (-0.3pp), Waterford (-0.3pp) and Mayo (-0.3pp).

Despite evidence of progress, the report highlights a continued imbalance between Dublin and the rest of the country, as commercial vacancy rates remain stubbornly high outside the capital.

In total, GeoDirectory data shows that 15 counties registered vacancy rates higher than the national average in Q4 2017, unchanged from twelve months ago.

Sligo, at 18.7%, was the county with the highest vacancy rate, followed by Galway (16.2%), Leitrim (15.6%) Mayo (15.3%) and Longford (15.1%).