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22/08/2005
Value of pubs sold in Dublin so far this year reaches €100m
THE value of pubs sold in Dublin has hit around €100m so far this year, with the number of pubs changing hands in the first three quarters of 2005 set to be more than double the number which sold in the same nine months of 2004.
As the trade adjusts to the smoking ban and the prices of properties ease, the number of transactions is due to surpass 26 in the coming weeks, compared with just 13 individual sales in the same period of 2004.
By the end of July, a strong 24 units were sold in Dublin, while a further four to five contracts are agreed but not finalised, according to industry insiders.
Last year's pub deals included the sale of the majority stake in the Thomas Read Group to financier Paul Connolly. Several pubs were involved in this deal, but it is generally counted as one transaction, giving a better indicator of interest in individual units.
While high-profile, well-located pubs are still selling well, pub prices have eased somewhat. At the end of 2002/2003, publicans were getting over three times turnover for bars.
However, this has settled at around two to three times turnover now and, as uncertainty over the smoking ban fades, several more properties are coming to the market.
Tony Morrissey of Morrissey Auctioneers said that he expected over 35 pubs to be sold by the end of the year. He said that the sector had come to grips with the ban and that some pubs continued to get multiples of turnover.
However, pubs in this category are rare, as margins have fallen in recent years, impacting on capital value, he added. Among the highlights of the past number of months was the sale of the Stag's Head, which was bought by publican Louis Fitzgerald for €5.8m.
John Gunne, of CB Richard Ellis Gunne, said that the value of pubs which have changed hands this year was close to €100m. "There was a very healthy first half, with a good level of pub sales," he said.
He added that the prices being achieved were directly related to the turnover of pubs. Location is a key factor, while pubs which have started successfully selling food are also doing well.
Other highlights of the year so far include the sale of the Portobello, which went for €8.5m. Hanlons Corner on the North Circular Road sold for €4.6m and The Eagle House in Glasthule changed hands for around €4.7m.
At the end of the month McDonaghs in Dalkey - a pub which has been in family hands for 67 years - comes to the market, and this will also be a further indicator of interest in the trade.
Irish Independent
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