Donegal’s average monthly rent increases by 5.4% according to Daft.ie report

Monthly rents in Donegal rose by 5.4% in the second quarter of 2025 compared to the same period last year, according to the latest rental report from Daft.ie. 

The average listed rent in Donegal now stands at €1,249, whilst still the lowest average rental price in the country, it is 93% higher than during the Covid-19 pandemic, meaning that rental costs have nearly doubled in that time period. 

Limerick City had the sharpest increase in rent costs in the second quarter of 2025, with rents rising by 14.9% compared to last year, while rents in other cities like Waterford and Cork increased by 12.5% and 11.8% respectively. 

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Commuter-belt counties, such as Meath, Westmeath, and Kildare, which are near Dublin, had the lowest rent increases in the country, with Meath’s rent costs rising by only 3%. However, Meath’s average rent at €2,000 per month is still considerably higher than Donegal's. 

As of August 1, there were just 2,300 homes available to rent nationwide, 14% fewer than this time last year and less than half the average seen between 2015 and 2019.

The Associate Professor in Economics at Trinity College Dublin, Ronan Lyons, said the figures reflected an upward march of rents continuing as availability showed little sign of improving.

He commented: “It will be a number of years before any increase in supply is meaningful enough to start addressing the large deficit of rental housing in the country.”