Ireland’s rich are getting richer. According to a recent report in The Irish Times, the country will have 3,330 multimillionaires by 2025, outgrowing Spain and France in this respect. With more affluence comes greater choice of the type of lifestyle one aspires to: in January and February this year Spain welcomed around 20% more Irish travellers than during the same months in 2015. In part, these travellers come to enjoy a luxurious holiday at the Costa del Sol or Costa del Luz, but they also come to assess Spain’s investment potential.
According to developers Taylor Wimpey, residential property in Spain is a veritable hit with buyers from Ireland. Property sales to Irish buyers have increased by a staggering 200% compared to 2015.
This trend is borne out by London-based estate agents Knight Frank, who predict that over the next decade Ireland will boast around 22,000 millionaires, who will continue to get richer. Knight Frank’s “Wealth Report 2016” reveals that more than 200 Irish citizens will become one of the super-rich, an “ultra high net worth individual”, somebody with investable assets, typically property, worth more than $30 million.
What do Ireland’s Rich spend their Wealth on?
For a start, they like to buy super yachts! Sales of yachts boasting more than 24 metres in length increased by 40% in 2015, according to Knight Frank’s survey. However, Ireland’s super-rich longer deem mooring their yachts in St Tropez or sun-bathing at Marbella’s Nikki Beach Club as top of the bucket list. They are now steering their yachts to far more exotic locations such as Asia or Antarctica.
But do like to invest in Spanish property and luxury holiday villas in Marbella’s exclusive La Zagaleta golf urbanization or in equally exclusive El Madronal, a district located in the leafy hills above the city centre, is regarded as a sound investment with good prospects for capital gains once more.
And for those with more money than sense, or so it seems, there are always football clubs to invest in. Indeed, the allure of new TV rights deals for sports events, according to Knight Frank, has proved irresistible to those seeking to diversify their investment portfolios. Primeira Liga of Portugal is top of the investment list at present.
Where is the Money coming from?
Ireland saw a 123% grown in inward investment between 2005 and 2015, amounting to around $895 billion invested by foreigners in Ireland, who for the most bought property in Ireland following the dramatic slump in property prices in 2008.
Since then, property prices in Ireland have been rising sharply again, creating much of the new-found wealth. However, during those years, Irish investors were not idle either, but they invested more money outside of their home country than in it. Around $1.3 trillion investments were made by Irish people between 2005 and 2015, an increase of 284% from 2005 and a growing trend still. Spain’s property market, for the time being, will continue to excise Irish investors’ interest, a trend that explains in part why sales in Barcelona’s and Marbella’s luxury property markets have risen so far above the national average in recent years. Other areas of buying interest for rich Irish individuals are classic cars, Swiss watches and wine, according to Knight Franks’ 2016 survey.