Retail Parks Star In Ireland’s 12 Deals Of Christmas
Total transaction volumes across Ireland’s real estate market have remained well below the peaks of the past, but this year has also pointed to a modest recovery across asset classes, including the troubled office sector.
Repricing and the lack of new development, plus strong occupier demand, have refocused commercial real estate, while the private rented sector also saw a comeback — although retail parks have stolen the show in this year’s top 12 Irish real estate investment deals.
A total of €690M was invested in the Irish commercial property market in the third quarter of 2025, bringing the year-to-date spend to just over €1.63B. While Q3 activity was still 24% below the five-year quarterly average, the latest figures point to a sustained recovery, with volumes up 84% quarter-on-quarter and 16% higher year-on-year, according to Colliers.
In terms of a sector outlook for 2026, Colliers pointed to industrial and logistics, with three large portfolios currently moving through sales processes from Iput, EQT and Horizon, while it said the office market will remain active.
Student accommodation is also becoming more prominent, with Commerz Real acquiring a scheme in Grangegorman for just over €22M; while Marlet has recently launched a 193-bed development in Stoneybatter to the market guiding at €42M.
Inevitably, last-minute deals might yet sneak into the year's top 12, including two of the industrial and logistics sales, the Jervis Shopping Centre, build-to-rent scheme 18 Newmarket Square and purpose-built student accommodation portfolio Project Galaxy in Dublin and Galway.
With data compiled from the Dublin offices of JLL, CBRE and Colliers, here is Bisnow's annual look at Ireland’s top 12 deals of the year.
12. 2 Dublin Landings, North Docklands
The sale of 2 Dublin Landings, a prime long-income office investment in Dublin’s north Docklands, was completed late this year for a price in excess of €50M, according to Savills Ireland. The sale was completed on the instructions of the Deloitte restructuring team to MEAG, the German asset manager for reinsurance giant Munich Re. Originally marketed earlier this year with a guide price of around €60M, the agreed price was estimated to be closer to €50M, reflecting the ongoing repricing of the city’s office sector.
11. 24-26 City Quay, South Docklands
The riverside office building at 24-26 City Quay in Dublin's south Docklands, refurbished in 2020, changed hands for €53.5M, with the buyer reportedly a French investor. With tenants including blue-chip firms and a rental income of roughly €4.9M per annum, the deal highlighted demand for centrally located, sustainable office space in a year when French investors were especially active in stable, long-income commercial assets.
10. Grand Hotel Malahide
The Grand Hotel Malahide was acquired by hotel operator FBD Hotels & Resorts from the Ryan family in a transaction valued at €55M. The purchase underscored continued appetite for regional hotel assets in Ireland, capitalising on a rebound in leisure travel and demand for coastal getaway destinations. Notably, it is one of four hotel assets in the top 12.
9. Park West Business Park, Dublin
An industrial and logistics portfolio at Park West Business Park in Dublin was acquired by investment manager ICG for approximately €65M after it entered into an off-market deal with developer Harcourt Developments. It covers around 445K SF of industrial assets and reflected ongoing investor interest in logistics and industrial assets in what so far has been a quieter year for one of Ireland’s strongest-performing sectors but could be set to change if portfolio deals get over the line before 31 December.
8. 10 Hanover Quay, South Docklands
South Docklands office property 10 Hanover Quay was bought by Pontegadea, the family office of the founder of Spanish retail group Inditex, following its sale by Kennedy Wilson in partnership with NAMA, for around €66M. The sale underscored continuing investor interest in Dublin’s Docklands office submarket, particularly for modern, well-tenanted assets attractive to multinational tenants.
7. 20 Kildare Street, Dublin
The refurbished offices at 20 Kildare Street in Dublin’s political heartland — developed behind a restored Georgian-period façade and featuring a triple-height glazed atrium and sustainable NZEB credentials — was acquired by German investor Deka Immobilien for over €70M in a busy year in Ireland for the company. Fully let to a mix of high-profile tenants and achieving a rent roll of circa €4M a year, the building is a strong trophy asset.
6. Birchwood Court, North Dublin
Shortly after completing a deal for Spencer Place, Ardstone Capital returned to the PRS market with a €79M acquisition of the 180-unit apartment scheme Birchwood Court in Santry, north Dublin. The purchase further expanded Ardstone’s growing residential fund, which now spans several thousand units around Dublin and its environs. The deal highlighted continued investor appetite for modern rental housing, albeit often at yield levels lower than historical norms, as Dublin’s ongoing residential supply crisis continued to dominate the headlines.
5. Radisson Dublin Airport
The four-star Radisson Blu Hotel Dublin Airport, a 229-bedroom hotel near Dublin Airport, was bought from Emerald Investment and its operator Windward Management by Ireland’s biggest hotel operator, Dalata, for €83M. The acquisition completed mid-2025 and will see the property rebranded under Dalata’s Clayton brand. Dalata had previously set out ambitious plans for domestic and international growth in what has been a significant year for the group — it agreed to be acquired by Swedish hotel owner Pandox and Norwegian investor Eiendomsspar for around €1.4B.
4. Ruby Molly, Dublin
The recently developed, 272-room Ruby Molly city centre hotel, completed in May 2024 by developer Creekvale, an ESR Group subsidiary, was sold to German investor Deka Immobilien for €86M for its open-ended real estate fund Deka-Immobilien Europa. The property was owned through ESR Europe Active Real Estate Fund IV, a discretionary value-add fund targeting Western Europe. The sale followed ESR Europe’s previous disposal of an Irish residential development that was also owned under the same fund for €160M, bringing the total combined realisation in Dublin to circa €246M in 2025. It came at a time of sustained investor interest in Dublin’s hotel sector, which also welcomed the first Hoxton Hotel in late November.
3. Trinity Collection, Multiple Locations
It is not just Ireland where retail parks have been a shining star. But Realty Income REIT deepened its involvement in the Irish retail park market with the purchase of the Trinity Collection, a portfolio of three parks located at Belgard (Tallaght), the M1 Retail Park in Drogheda and Poppyfield in Clonmel. The portfolio was bought from developer Marlet Property Group and its funding partner M&G Investment Partners for €123.5M. The deal came roughly three years after the parks were acquired from a previous U.S. investor.
2. Spencer Place, North Docklands
A 360-unit, high-end apartment scheme in Dublin’s north Docklands, developed by Ronan Group Real Estate in partnership with Fortress Investment Group, was sold to Irish investor Ardstone Capital for €177M. Ardstone prevailed in a competitive bidding process, which reportedly involved several major international property investors, for a deal representing around a 4.9% yield. The acquisition signalled a renewed appetite for institutional-grade, private-rented units in Dublin after a moribund period for the asset class.
1. Oaktree Portfolio, Multiple Locations
To underline the appeal of retail parks, the top deal of the year was for a portfolio of eight major Irish retail parks — previously held by Oaktree Capital Management — which was also acquired by U.S. investor Realty Income REIT in a deal recently reported at over €220M. The transaction represented Realty Income’s most significant foray into the Irish market to date, while the divestment also underscored Oaktree’s strategy to crystallise gains after boosting the overall rent roll by more than 40% since its original acquisition.
