20 pubs were sold in Dublin during 2024 with a combined value of €69.6 million - an increase from €47.3 million for the same number of sales in 2023.
The figures come from a new report from Lisney and also showed that publicans remained the dominant purchaser class, accounting for 55 per cent of volume and 37 per cent of value.
The report from the multi-disciplinary property advisory company also showed that private equity re-emerged as a significant purchaser class, with three transactions accounting for 39 per cent of the total market value in 2024.
Staffing remains a significant concern for licensed premises, with the rise in minimum wage increasing costs for operators.
A total of 21 licensed premises were publicly offered for sale in Dublin during 2024, a notable reduction on the 34 offered publicly in 2023.
Of the properties publicly offered for sale in 2024, six were directly linked to challenges arising from the conclusion of the debt warehousing scheme.
The main factors driving supply in 2024 were retirement and business realignment, with 80 per cent of the sales completed publicly being retirement driven. By year-end, nine pubs had sold publicly with a further 11 sales concluded off-market.
Lisney said appetite remained for well-located Dublin city premises as illustrated by the sales of Bar Eile cornering Baggot Street and Mespil Road, Foley’s on Merrion Row, Cassidy’s on Westmoreland Street, Cassidy’s on Camden Street, McSorley’s Ranelagh, and Devitt’s on Camden Street. Of these six sales, five transacted off market.
According to Lisney, challenges faced by the license premises sector during 2024 included staffing, rising utility costs, VAT on food sales, group debt warehousing and the availability of bank finance.
Lisney said the 6.2 per cent increase in the national minimum wage to €13.50 in January 2025, alongside the introduction of additional labour-related measures such as statutory sick pay, increased public holidays, pension auto-enrolment and PRSI increases, has further contributed to the financial pressures faced by operators.
The VAT rate on the sale of alcohol has remained at 23 per cent and the VAT rate on food at 13.5 per cent, despite the Licensed Vintners Association (LVA) and the Vintners Federation of Ireland (VFI) lobbying the government for a return to the nine per cent rate on food sales in an effort to protect jobs.
