Market is alive and kicking, says auctioneer MacDonaldHooke & MacDonald have never been shy when it comes to larging up the property market. Their breathless rhapsodies have been a part of the property scene for well over a decade.
The auctioneer's tennis-playing figurehead, Ken MacDonald, politely took exception to Final Word's musings a few weeks back that, like it or not, the market was dormant.
Wrong, he said, there's plenty of action out there in the new homes arena.
OK, we said, give us some figures and we'll see what we can do.
"Well," responded Ken, "We've sold €100m worth of new homes in the last six weeks and, while that mightn't have us back at 2006 levels it certainly compares favourably to 2004 and 2005."
The developments that have chipped in the majority of those sales are the Churchfields development in Ashbourne where 105 homes have been sold and the Parnell Street development Greeg Court -- one of the last of the Section 23s -- which sold its entire 115 stock over its launch weekend.
Fair enough Ken but what about the commuter belt ?
"Agreed," he says, "things are slower on that front."
Right Ken, so to conclude, I don't want to feel like the cheerleader for a sinking ship.
So can I quote you as saying that come June 2008 we will be in a considerably better place than we are now ?
"Absolutely," says Ken, "Just come in to our reception area at the moment. It's like Heuston Station. People are buying properties for the same price as they were 18 months previously and with Dublin rents going up in double digits, there's real confidence out there."
Message delivered.
