Athlone has county's highest commercial vacancy rate
According to a new report, Athlone has the highest commercial vacancy rate in Westmeath, with almost one in five units in the town currently unoccupied.
The GeoView commercial property report for the second quarter of this year, which is based on data compiled by An Post and Ordnance Survey Ireland, found that commercial vacancies increased slightly between April and June.
However, the report said it was too early, at this stage, to gauge the impact of Covid-19 on commercial property stock and vacancy rates.
The report said Westmeath's commercial vacancy rate stood at 11.8%, which was up by 0.2% on the previous quarter, while west of the Shannon, in Roscommon the vacancy rate was at 16.6%, an increase of 0.4 percentage points.
Athlone's commercial vacancy rate was significantly higher than the county average, at 18.1%, while Moate's vacancy rate of 13.7% was almost exactly in line with the national average (13.5%).
The vacancy rate in Roscommon town stood at 20.9%, while Sligo was the county with the highest rate of unoccupied units (19.3%)
The GeoView report said the impact of the pandemic on economies across Europe, and the increasing in numbers working from home, meant it would be 2021 or 2022 before the full impact of Covid-19 on commercial property trends becomes apparent.
"This is the third report in a row in which the national commercial vacancy rate has increased compared to the previous year," stated Dara Keogh, Chief Executive of GeoDirectory.
"We can expect to see further significant changes in the coming years with the moderation in economic growth predicted as a result of Covid-19, international tourism in significant decline, the risk of a no-deal Brexit on the table and working from home becoming more prevalent.
"Our analysis of ten-year property trends also provided some interesting data. While online banking appears to have resulted in a reduction in the number of physical banks and credit unions, perhaps surprisingly, the number of travel agents and cinemas has remained stable," he said.