This release is categorised as a CSO Frontier Series Output. Particular care must be taken when interpreting the statistics in this release as it may use new methods which are under development and/or data sources which may be incomplete, for example new administrative data sources.
Please note the data contained within this release cannot be compared directly with other measures of vacancy including those available from organisations outside the CSO. These measures may have distinct definitions of vacancy and also different methods of collecting their data. For further information on the data sources, linking procedures, and limitations of this release, see the Background Notes and Methodology section.
There were 72,254 dwellings in Ireland which consumed very low levels of electricity over the 12-month period to the end of Quarter 4 (Q4) 2023. This gave an estimated national vacancy rate of 3.3% based on low electricity consumption.
Using low levels of metered electricity consumption as a measure for vacancy, the number of vacant dwellings fell from 76,457 (3.6%) in Q4 2022 to 72,254 (3.3%) in Q4 2023.
There were 498 more dwellings that moved out of vacancy than became vacant in Q4 2023.
Using Electricity Supply Board (ESB) designations, 51% of vacant dwellings in Q4 2023 were in rural areas.
The Local Authorities with the highest vacancy rates in Q4 2023 were Leitrim (8.5%), Roscommon (6.5%), and Mayo (6.4%).
In contrast, much lower vacancy rates were found in South Dublin (1%), Fingal, and Kildare (both 1.4%).
Glenties in Donegal was the Local Electoral Area (LEA) with the highest number of vacant dwellings in Q4 2023 (1,636), while the lowest number was in Leixlip, Kildare (81).
In Q4 2023, over 21% of vacant dwellings with Building Energy Ratings (BER) assessments were constructed since 2001.
Housing for All: A New Housing Plan for Ireland identifies a requirement for data relating to residential vacancy in order to facilitate more efficient use of the existing housing stock. As metered electricity consumption data in Ireland is collected by a single organisation (ESB Networks), residential electricity consumption data offers an opportunity to deliver insights into housing occupancy and vacancy levels in the State. Residential Vacancy based on Metered Electricity Consumption 2023 is based on using very low levels of electricity consumption in individual dwellings to approximate residential vacancy. To reduce the possibility of misclassifying occupied dwellings as vacant, very low electricity consumption recorded over a one-year period is required for a dwelling to be classified as vacant for the purposes of this analysis. This release includes both the number of vacant residential units and rates for the years 2022 and 2023.
It is important to note that the methodology used in this release has been refined and as such the data contained in it should not be compared directly with the release published by the CSO in 2021 (Vacant Dwelling Indicators based on Metered Electricity Consumption). While the data for 2022 and 2023 can be treated as a time series within this publication, it cannot be compared with the data previously published for 2021 due to the methodological changes introduced since then.
The classification of active ESB Network connections with a suitably low level of consumption over four consecutive quarters as vacant is intended to estimate a measure of long-term vacancy. This is distinct from the Census measure of vacancy which can include dwellings which are unoccupied for both short and long periods and therefore typically includes more dwellings. The stock of dwellings used in this release is the number of active ESB connections. This differs from the Census where the dwelling stock is primarily based on ‘on the ground’ enumeration by field staff at the time of the Census. Using electricity data to proxy dwelling level occupancy has also recently been used by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
Similarly, the data contained within this release cannot be compared directly with other measures of vacancy which are available from organisations outside the CSO. These measures may have distinct definitions of vacancy and also different methods of collecting their data. Among the benefits of using the ESB Network data to measure vacancy is that it is a single source of information, and it provides geographical granularity and the capacity to link to other administrative data sources within the CSO for enrichment and validation. Currently, there is no generally accepted national or international standard on how residential vacancy can be either defined or collected. Accordingly, it is acknowledged that the definition of vacancy and the method of data collection used in this release may not necessarily be suited to all users’ requirements and that the figures may vary significantly from other approaches to estimating residential vacancy.
In this release, a dwelling is defined as vacant when it has very little or no electricity consumption over four consecutive quarters (12 months). This definition identifies vacancy over an extended period of time. It should not be compared with other definitions of vacancy, for example Census 2022 or Propery Tax Analysis published by Revenue. Using ESB Networks electricity consumption data also represents a significantly different way of collecting vacancy data to these and other approaches to residential vacancy. See Background Notes and Methodology chapter for more information on methodological differences between different measures of vacancy.
Learn more about the consumption threshold and time frame decisions for this release in the Background Notes. An FAQ is also available.
| National Residential Vacancy based on Metered Electricity Consumption 2023 | ||
| Vacant Dwelling Numbers | Vacancy Rate (%) | |
| Q4 2022 | 76,457 | 3.6 |
| Q3 2023 | 73,077 | 3.4 |
| Q4 2023 | 72,254 | 3.3 |
| Change | Rate Change | |
| Change in last quarter | -823 (-1%) | -0.1 |
| Change in last year | -4,203 (-6%) | -0.3 |
The number of vacant dwellings based on metered electricity consumption data was 72,254 in Q4 2023. The number of vacant dwellings in Ireland fell from 76,457 to 72,254 between Q4 2022 and Q4 2023. The estimated vacancy rate in Ireland for dwellings based on metered electricity consumption was 3.3% in Q4 2023, down from 3.6% in Q4 2022. See Figures 1.1, 1.2, Tables 1.1 & 1.2 and PxStat Table VAC12.
The Local Authority with the highest vacancy rate in Q4 2023 was Leitrim at 8.5%, followed by Roscommon (6.5%), and Mayo (6.4%). This rate was lowest for South Dublin at 1%, Fingal, and Kildare (both 1.4%) (See Map 1.1).
The Local Authority with the highest number of vacant dwellings in Q4 2023 was Cork County at 6,599 followed by Donegal (5,570) and Dublin City (5,355). This number was lowest for Galway City (619), Carlow (710), and Laois (1,020). Between Q4 2022 and Q4 2023, the largest decreases in vacant dwelling numbers were in Cavan (-421), Donegal (-417) and Fingal (-298). Four local authorities (Wicklow, Cork City, Wexford, and Carlow) saw increases in vacant dwelling numbers in this period. Vacancy rates, vacant dwellings, and dwelling stock (ESB residential connections) numbers by local authority are available in the PxStat Table VAC14.
The Local Electoral Area (LEA) with the highest vacancy rate in Q4 2023 was Adare-Rathkeale in Limerick at 10.4%, while the LEA with the lowest vacancy rate was Palmerstown-Fonthill in Dublin at 0.8% (Map 1.2 shows the rates of vacancy by LEA).
Vacant dwelling numbers were highest in Glenties in Donegal (1,636), Adare-Rathkeale in Limerick (1,395), and Kenmare in Kerry (1,196). The numbers of vacant dwellings were generally lower in Dublin, Kildare, and surrounding areas and in the other cities. The lowest numbers of vacant dwellings were in Leixlip in Kildare (81), Ongar in Dublin (103), and Palmerstown-Fonthill (113) in Dublin. Vacancy rates, vacant dwelling, and dwelling stock (ESB residential connections) numbers by LEA are available in the PxStat Table VAC15.
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Statistician's Comment
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (24 September 2025) published a Frontier Series release that looks at vacancy numbers of residential dwellings using metered electricity consumption data for 2023. As a Frontier Series release, care must be taken when interpreting these results as methodologies may change and data sources may be incomplete.
Commenting on the release, Steven Conroy, Statistician in the Housing Division, said: “Today’s release identifies dwellings which were classified as vacant based on low levels of electricity consumption of around 2kWh per day, or 180kWh per quarter, over a period of at least four consecutive quarters. For context, 2kWh consumption is enough to power a medium-sized fridge for a day. This methodology provides insight into where vacant dwellings are and how vacancy rates have changed over time. The CSO has previously published Metered Electricity Consumption and Vacant Dwelling Indicators based on Metered Electricity Consumption 2021 using data provided by ESB Networks. Please see the Information Note and Editor's Note below for more information.
National Vacancy
The estimated vacancy rate in Ireland for dwellings based on metered electricity consumption was 3.3% in Q4 2023. The vacancy rate nationally fell from 3.6% in Q4 2022 to 3.3% in Q4 2023. The number of vacant dwellings based on metered electricity consumption data was 72,254 in Q4 2023, which was down from 76,457 in Q4 2022.
Geographical Aspects
In Q4 2023, there were 36,814 vacant dwellings in rural areas compared with 35,440 in urban areas. This resulted in a rural vacancy rate of 5.7% and an urban vacancy rate of 2.3%. Vacancy rates were lower in Dublin, Kildare, and the surrounding areas and in the other cities.
The Local Authority with the highest vacancy rate was Leitrim at 8.5%, while the Local Authority with the lowest vacancy rate was South Dublin at 1%. The highest numbers of vacant dwellings at a Local Authority level were in Cork County (6,599), Donegal (5,570), and Dublin City (5,355), with the lowest numbers in Laois (1,020), Carlow (710), and Galway City (619).
The Local Electoral Area (LEA) with the highest vacancy rate was Adare-Rathkeale in Limerick at 10.4%, while the LEA with the lowest vacancy rate was Palmerstown-Fonthill in Dublin at 0.8%. Glenties in Donegal was the LEA with the highest number of vacant dwellings in Q4 2023 (1,636), while the lowest was in Leixlip in Kildare (81).
Vacancy Flows
This release presents quarterly data of the number of dwellings moving out of vacancy and the number of dwellings that become vacant. A dwelling is considered to move out of vacancy when, following a period of at least four consecutive quarters of electricity consumption below 180kWh per quarter, electricity consumption rises above 180kWh in the next quarter. Similarly, a dwelling moves into vacancy following four consecutive quarters of electricity consumption below 180kWh after previously having consumed more than this amount. In Q4 2023, we found that 7,496 vacant dwellings moved out of vacancy, which was 498 more dwellings more than moved into vacancy in that quarter.
Building Energy Ratings (BER) and Vacant Dwellings
When vacant dwellings could be matched with a Building Energy Rating (BER) assessment in Q4 2023, detached houses were the most common dwelling type, making up 35% of vacant dwellings. More than a third (35%) of dwellings which were vacant in Q4 2023 had a BER rating of F or G and more than a fifth (21%) were constructed since 2001. The most popular forms of heating were heating oil (40%), mains gas (26%), and electricity (21%). It was also found that less than 3% of vacant dwellings had Solar Energy as a renewable energy source in Q4 2023."