Cairn Homes currently has 4,000 apartments under construction, the company says, with units in some larger schemes for State funded partners being sold for the “low €400,000s” amid recent Government supports to boost construction in this segment of the market.
The Dublin-listed homebuilder expects its total output to reach 6,000 between 2026 and 2027 and is forecasting sales of €1.02 billion to €1.05 billion this year, according to a trading statement on Tuesday. Revenue rose 9 per cent last year to €945 million, it said.
Residential unit completions rose 5 .5 per cent last year to 2,365.
Cairn sees its 2026 operating profit coming in at between €175 million and €180 million, having risen 12.3 per cent last year to €168.5 million. That 2025 out-turn beat Goodbody Stockbrokers’ estimate by 3.6 per cent.
Chief executive Michael Stanley said a number of Government initiatives and supports aimed at addressing a shortage in urban apartments “are significant steps which will be very impactful”.
“With this backdrop, Cairn has made substantial investments in our growth opportunity. In 2025, we incurred our largest ever outlay in construction activities and new site commencements,” he said. “We also acquired new near-term development land in Cork, Galway, Dublin and surrounding counties, and entered into new joint ventures and partnerships.”
Apartment schemes are typically constructed with pre-funding from partners. Approved Housing Bodies and the Land Development Agency had stepped into the market in recent years to fund apartment schemes, following an exodus of mainly overseas money from the private rental sector amid spikes in interest rates and construction costs after the Covid-19 pandemic.
The private rental sector showed initial signs of a rebound in the second half of last year, helped by falling interest rates and new supports for the sector, according to industry observers.
The Government decided in Budget 2026 to cut the VAT rate on the sale of completed apartments to 9 per cent from 13.5 per cent, and introduce enhanced corporation tax deductions for certain apartment construction projects in an effort to improve the viability of development projects.
It followed new apartment construction guidelines, unveiled over the summer, including an increase in the number of studio apartments developers could include in a project and a reduction in the minimum permitted size of apartments.
Those guidelines have been the subject of a High Court legal challenge amid claims they should have been subject to an environmental assessment. The court last month referred aspects of the case to the Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ) for clarification on EU legislation.
“Cairn now has developments with over 4,000 apartments under construction, including cost rental, social, affordable purchase, Croí Cónaithe, age friendly housing and for other private purchasers,” said Mr Stanley. The Croí Cónaithe scheme is designed to support construction of apartments for owner-occupiers.
“Larger apartment schemes under construction for our State-funded partners are now being delivered at VAT inclusive average selling prices in the low €400,000s. This clearly proves that apartments built to very high quality and energy efficiency standards can be constructed in Ireland at similar costs to comparable apartments in other European countries.”
Cairn’s forward order book now stands at more than 3,000 new homes with a net sales value of €1.15 billion at the end of last year, an increase from 2,361 new homes and €910 million a year ago.
Cairn sees its return on equity – a measure of profitability – coming in at 16.5 per cent this year, down just 0.01 of a percentage point from 2025.