New analysis of the construction sector has found that nine out of ten housebuilding firms in Ireland deliver fewer than 50 units a year.
The report from Home Building Finance Ireland has, for the first time in this country, categorised housebuilders based on their delivery capacity and their geographic footprint.
HBFI was set up by the Government to fund the delivery of new homes and started operations in 2019.
Its “The Scaling Challenge” report, published today, reveals a highly fragmented market, with a large number of small and medium developers and just a small number of large developers.
The report found that 90% (794) of housebuilding companies are classified as “small” and deliver fewer than 50 units annually, while just 9% (83) are medium-sized housebuilders who build between 50 and 299 units annually.
Just 1% (11) large developers are producing more than 300 units annually.
An analysis of homes delivered from 2020 to 2025 show that these 11 large developers account for 32% of total completed units, reflecting their ability to deliver at scale across various locations.
The report also shows how medium developers, many of whom deliver units nationally and whose scaling potential will play a key role in increasing housing supply, account for 38% of all output, with small developers delivering a further 29%.
Home Building Finance Ireland commissioned advisory firm KPMG to carry out the research, which identified close to 900 housebuilding entities in the market.
It said the research will be used to inform its development of financing solutions that can help SME housebuilders to deliver more homes.
Dara Deering, the HBFI’s chief executive, said the organisation is an active supporter of SME housebuilders, with over 80% of its funding approvals targeted at SMEs seeking €20m or less.
“This report means, for the first time, we have data to give us a better sense of how the housebuilding market is made up and how we can get more SME housebuilders to deliver more homes,” Ms Deering said.
“The report’s findings emphasise the value of HBFI’s ongoing commitment to funding SME developers throughout the country,” she said,
“We are continuing to grow our loan book in response to demand and this report will inform us as we develop additional solutions for SME housebuilders, to help them get easier access to the financing they need and scale up to meet the level of demand,” she added.
Tánaiste and Minister for Finance Simon Harris said that as the country scales up housing delivery nationwide, it is essential that every part of this housing delivery ecosystem has the right conditions to deliver and to grow.
“This research provides a shared, evidence-based foundation to inform housing policy across Government and the wider housing delivery system,” Mr Harris said.
“To achieve our target of 300,000 homes by 2030, we need a sector that can scale sustainably. That means supporting homebuilders to grow and evolve – from small to medium, and from medium to large,” he added.
