'Starved of supply': Waterford's rental market report reveals almost 10% increase in prices

In Waterford City, the average rent of a two-bedroom apartment in the third quarter of 2025 was €1490, up 9.9% on a year ago.

In Waterford county, the average price of a three-bedroom house in the third quarter of 2025 was €1747, up 10% on a year ago.

Nationally, market rents rose by an average of 1.7% in the third quarter of 2025, according to the latest Rental Report by Daft.ie.

This is the eighteenth consecutive quarter of rising rents.

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Market rents are now one third higher than their pre-covid levels and two thirds higher than their Celtic Tiger peak in late 2007.

The average monthly rent for a two-bedroom apartment nationwide, between June and September, was €2,080.

There were just over 1,900 homes available to rent nationwide on November 1st.

This is down 21% year-on-year and less than half the average for the period 2015-2019. 

"The picture remains unchanged – this is a market starved of supply. The easing off of inflation from over 13% in 2022 to 4.3% now has been welcome. However, the sharp fall in availability of homes to rent suggests that any further pressure on rents over the coming quarters will be upwards. While it will take years, significant amounts of new rental supply – all around the country – are required to change conditions in the rental market," Ronan Lyons, author of the report, said. 

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The report shows that rental inflation remains lower in Dublin than the national average, with prices rising by 2.7% in the capital compared to 4.3% nationally.

In Waterford city, rents are up 11.4% year on year. Outside the cities, the rate of inflation is just above 5%.

In Cork city, rents are up 9.3% year-on-year, while in Galway and Limerick cities, rents are up by 6%.