Insight & Opinion

Prime country home sales reached €267 million across 194 deals last year, according to Savills analysis of the Property Price Register. Total sales increased by 16% compared to the previous year with the average deal size standing at €1.4 million. Cork county was the most popular location, representing 21% of all transactions. This was closely followed by Kildare which accounted for 20% of activity. At a more local level, Kinsale was the most sought-after town with 14 sales totalling €23 million. Additionally, analysis of Savills prime country homes sales figures found that upsizing continues to be the most common reason for buying. Similarly, half of sellers were trading down, indicating alignment between both sides of the market. Despite economic headwinds, including likely upward pressure on inflation later in the year, we expect the prime country homes market to remain resilient in 2026.

Investment volumes reached €677 million in Q3, down 2.5% from the same quarter last year. However, the profile of activity shifted towards larger transactions, with 21 deals completing at an average size of €32 million, compared with €20 million a year earlier. Year-to-date investment hasexceeded €2.0 billion, representing the strongest first nine months since 2022. Based on the current pipeline, we expect Q4 to bring annual volumes to around €3.0 billion.

Prime country home sales reached €275 million across 168 deals last year, according to Savills analysis of the Property Price Register. Total sales were worth almost twice the 10-year average of €139 million, with the average deal size standing at €1.6 million.