Home builder Glenveagh said it had a strong start to 2024 as high demand for housing continued. Chief executive Stephen Garvey said the company would deliver more than 2,700 homes this year, supported by favourable market conditions and Government initiatives.
But the company said meeting Government targets of up to 50,000 homes per year would require the industry and private sector capital to work together with the State to achieve it in a sustainable way.
In an update in advance of its annual general meeting, the company said it sold, signed or reserved more than 1,440 suburban units so far in 2024, up from 1,106 units at the end of February 2024, as the underlying demand continued to support the market.
About 650 units are expected this year, with Glenveagh agreeing commercial terms for a forward fund transaction on an existing higher-density urban development.
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Mr Garvey said the Government’s initiatives were having the desired effect on industry performance and output. “The range of demand and supply-side incentives, coupled with enhanced compact growth guidelines and encouraging improvements in planning policy and systems, supported an increase in annual completions to approximately 33,000 in 2023, up 55 per cent since 2019.
“The 63 per cent increase in commencements in Q1 this year indicates that output levels are very likely to increase further in 2024. Building on this momentum is critical so that the industry can meet the next phase of output growth, to deliver well over 50,000 homes annually.”
Glenveagh said its forward order book has increased to €963 million, up from €805 million at the end of February. Earnings per share are expected to be up by 17 cent for the fiscal year.
The home builder said it had received planning permission for more than 1,000 units since the beginning of 2024, with plans to lodge applications for more than 2,000 units throughout the year.
“The review of the national planning framework needs to provide a housing target that accurately reflects current and future population requirements, a target that is designed for viable and desirable homes in locations where there is demand,” Mr Garvey said.
“Effective delivery can be enabled by comprehensive resourcing of all aspects of the design, planning and development life cycle and by streamlining design standards at a national level. The partnership model can also be increasingly used alongside the established capabilities of the LDA to accelerate the development of homes on the State land bank. Most importantly, this next phase of growth will need the industry and private sector capital to work together with the State to achieve this increased supply in a sustainable manner.”
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