The Government is set to investigate after a British firm bought up the vast majority of homes in a new north Dublin housing estate.

The London-based company bought 46 houses in Belcamp Manor - more than 80% of the homes in the estate.

The houses were advertised on the open market for individual purchasers but were then bought in bulk for over €24 million.

They are now available for rent at over €3,000 per month.

In 2021, Government introduced a rise in stamp duty to act as a deterrent against the practice.

The new regulations mean that investors buying 10 or more residential homes have to pay 10% stamp duty - up from just 1%.

Houses in the Belcamp Manor estate in north Dublin. Image: Occu

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said yesterday Government will review the regulations once again if necessary.

"We'll have to take a look at this particular case, and see what happened in this particular case, and whether or not we need to do more in this area," he said.

"It might be the case that it was granted planning permission before that provision existed so I'll have to check on that.

"Definitely as far as Government policy is concerned, we want 2024 to be a year in which we build even more homes."

'A drop in the ocean'

Investment firms have spent more than €200 million on bulk buying 630 homes since the measure was first introduced.

Business Post journalist Killian Woods said firms appear to be more than happy to pay the extra costs.

"In 2021 the Government introduced new measures that were set up as a deterrent for bulk purchase of homes in housing estates," he said.

"At present if you buy more than 10 homes in a calendar year, you are liable to pay 10% stamp duty on each purchase as opposed to 1%.

"€200 million is still a drop in the ocean of the wider housing market and even a drop in the ocean of how much homes investors are buying in Ireland.

"It is acting maybe as a deterrent to certain investors, but clearly some investors are willing to pay the high percentage rate to access to homes in housing estates," he added.

The Belcamp Manor homes are being advertised for rent by Occu, but are not listed as individual units.

Additional reporting: Sheila Naughton

Main image: Houses in the Belcamp Manor estate in north Dublin. Image: Occu