{"id":345618,"date":"2026-03-14T08:29:12","date_gmt":"2026-03-14T08:29:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/345618\/"},"modified":"2026-03-14T08:29:12","modified_gmt":"2026-03-14T08:29:12","slug":"what-does-irelands-wealthiest-td-own-and-what-is-it-worth-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/345618\/","title":{"rendered":"What does \u2018Ireland\u2019s wealthiest TD\u2019 own and what is it worth? \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

A man in Dublin<\/a> recalls an unexpected encounter with local politics done the Healy-Rae way. <\/p>\n

He has no personal links with Co Kerry<\/a> but was next of kin to an elderly relative who had loose connections with the county in the distant past and had long since left. <\/p>\n

When the relative died a short while ago, the man was surprised to receive a bereavement pack in the post. This included a note, a card and a yellow bookmark with a message of sympathy and a syrupy poem on the sorrow of death: \u201cGradually, you will learn acquaintance with the invisible form of your departed; And when the work of grief is done, The wound of loss will heal.\u201d<\/p>\n

At the bottom of the bookmark was the name of Independent TD Michael Healy-Rae<\/a>, together with his constituency and Leinster House phone numbers and Oireachtas<\/a> email. <\/p>\n

If attending funerals is part of the stock-in-trade of a TD\u2019s life, the Kerry politician\u2019s grief bookmark brings this to a new level.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey have this down to a fine art,\u201d said the recipient, noting how he was an outsider in Kerry and that it would have taken some effort to identify him as next of kin and find his home address. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe thing that took my breath away was the bookmark, and the effortless assumption of familiarity.\u201d<\/p>\n

Welcome to the singular world of the Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine with responsibility for Forestry, Farm Safety and Horticulture. <\/p>\n

Fellow Minister of State Timmy Dooley of Fianna F\u00e1il, whose office is two doors down from Healy-Rae, said his colleague has taken to the job with enthusiasm. <\/p>\n

\u201cI have known him a long time. But seeing him up close, he\u2019s an early riser like myself; he\u2019s regularly in the office before 7am and regularly among the last to leave.\u201d<\/p>\n

Still, he is not a man to allow Government business to obscure his work back home. <\/p>\n

\u201cThey know how the planning system works. They know the health system. If you\u2019re travelling and your passport is out of date, they know what to do. And they have contacts everywhere,\u201d said a Kerryman who knows Healy-Rae well. <\/p>\n

Healy-Rae (59) has the benefit of being transported by State drivers these days but he was long reputed to notch up 120,000km on the road each year, between the long drive to Leinster House and unrelenting Kerry groundwork. He is on the road again for St Patrick\u2019s Day but is heading further afield, visiting Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania as part of the annual Government diplomatic drive for the national day. <\/p>\n

\"Bookmark\"The bookmark sent by Independent TD Michael Healy-Rae to a relative of a person with a Kerry connection who died. The bookmark came as part of a bereavement pack that also included a note and a card <\/p>\n

Healy-Rae is in the news after the latest D\u00e1il register of members\u2019 interest<\/a> drew attention to his huge property portfolio and a big State contract to accommodate Ukrainians fleeing the Russian invasion. He also draws income from Kerry County Council\u2019s rental accommodation and housing assistance payment scheme. <\/p>\n

The cap-wearing landlord minister is a very rich man \u2013 and widely reputed to be the wealthiest TD in the D\u00e1il. If he isn\u2019t, he has never said so. <\/p>\n

He declared 14 houses for letting in Co Kerry, in addition to three guest houses, one rented commercial unit, a vacant premises and a single apartment for letting. There was an unquantified number of \u201capartments for letting\u201d in another development and an unquantified number of \u201crooms for letting\u201d elsewhere. Student accommodation for letting in Limerick was declared but not the actual amount.<\/p>\n

Rough calculations based on Eircode property transaction data for 2025 \u2013 collated by the Central Statistics Office \u2013 suggest Healy-Rae\u2019s rental housing and guest house properties could have a market value of some \u20ac5.6 million. The actual figure may well be more than that \u2013 or indeed less \u2013 as estimates are based on median price data that take no account of the size, location or condition of the property in question. <\/p>\n

With housing in short supply, residential rents in Kerry are strong and rising fast. Recent figures from property website Daft.ie<\/a> suggest the listed monthly rents on two-bedroom apartments in the county rose 7.5 per cent last year to \u20ac1,354, with listed rents on two-bedroom houses rising 7.3 per cent to \u20ac1,310 and listed rents on four-bedroom houses rising 8.8 per cent to \u20ac1,879. <\/p>\n

Such income is subject to tax but 14 Kerry two-bedroom houses would bring in \u20ac18,340 per month at current market rents \u2013 or \u20ac220,080 per year. <\/p>\n

For all that, Kerry estate agent Johnny Greene of Property Partners Gallivan said Co Kerry landlords were leaving the market because of laws that came into force this month which cap rental increases on new tenancies. <\/p>\n

[\u00a0Healy-Rae urges \u2018serious rethink\u2019 of planned short-term lets crackdownOpens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n

\u201cSeven of the last 10 sales have been landlords exiting. They fear further Government intervention,\u201d Greene said this week in his Killarney office. <\/p>\n

Far from leaving the market, Healy-Rae has only added to his property over the years. <\/p>\n

Aged 44, when he first won a D\u00e1il seat in what then was the Kerry South constituency in the 2011 election, he was already the owner of 14 properties. <\/p>\n

An examination of successive D\u00e1il registers shows he declared 16 properties in 2016, 19 in 2018, 21 in 2020, 24 in 2022 and a grand total 28 for 2025, including his family home. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a landlord since he was 18 years of age; that\u2019s the way he started out,\u201d said Independent Kerry councillor Liam \u201cSpeedy\u201d Nolan, a north Kerry publican who is allied politically with the Minister of State and his family. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe doesn\u2019t put himself out like a man with a lot of money. He just works hard. He never goes to bed the same day he gets up.\u201d <\/p>\n

But Healy-Rae\u2019s interests as a landlord tell only part of the story. <\/p>\n

In 2024, his company Roughty Properties received some \u20ac470,000 from the Department of Children for Ukrainian accommodation. The payments were made month by month, \u20ac49,640 in March, \u20ac52,080 in April and so forth. <\/p>\n

This is in addition to his business as postmaster and owner of a Mace convenience store, Maxol filling station and car wash in Kilgarvan, the picturesque rural village in southeast Kerry that is his political heartland. Not far from the Co Cork border, Kilgarvan is about 31km by road from Killarney. <\/p>\n

His properties in the village include 100 acres of farmland and forestry, although no distinction is drawn between the two in the D\u00e1il register. He owns another 42 acres of forestry and another four acres of farmland elsewhere in Kilgarvan. <\/p>\n

The most recent assessment by auctioneers Sherry FitzGerald suggests farmland in the southwest region has an average valuation of \u20ac14,125 per acre. This puts a potential valuation of \u20ac1.46 million on Healy-Rae\u2019s farmland, assuming minimal forestry in the 100 acres. <\/p>\n

The most recent Institute of Professional Auctioneers and Valuers data puts a \u20ac6,960 value per acre on Munster forestry, suggesting the 40-acre plot could be worth about \u20ac278,000.<\/p>\n

\"MichaelMichael Healy-Rae: The Minister of State at his forestry near Kilgarvan, Co Kerry, last year. Photograph: Don MacMonagle <\/p>\n

Public records show these interests have been accumulated without any of the four companies in which Healy-Rae is a director \u2013 Roughty Properties, Black Cap & Co, ML Healy-Rae Properties and Roughty Plant Hire \u2013 ever drawing down a mortgage. <\/p>\n

Any personal mortgages are another matter but the Minister of State is not for discussing his personal interests. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe doesn\u2019t comment on his private business,\u201d said son Jackie Healy-Rae, his official press adviser and himself an Independent member of Kerry County Council. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe won\u2019t be commenting on his register of interests. The register is the register.\u201d<\/p>\n

Michael Healy-Rae, who secured almost 18,600 first-preference votes in the last election<\/a> in the Kerry constituency, is the figurehead in a powerful political dynasty that has travelled far beyond its Kilgarvan origins. His personal vote was the second-highest in the election, behind Pearse Doherty of Sinn F\u00e9in in Co Donegal. His brother Danny Healy-Rae is TD in the same Kerry constituency, receiving more than 8,000 first-preference votes. <\/p>\n

\"IndependentIndependent TD Danny Healy-Rae. Photo: Alan Betson <\/p>\n

Detailed election maps circulated to the supporters of the brothers show they carve up the sizeable county between them, setting out how people should cast their vote in 60 named areas. <\/p>\n

\u201cIf you support us please cast your vote in accordance with your location shown in this map,\u201d the guide says.<\/p>\n

[\u00a050 years of the Healy-Rae dynasty: Flat caps, populist politics and hard workOpens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n

People in larger northern and southern parts of Kerry were urged to give Michael their first-preference vote, while those in a smaller eastern area were urged to give their first preference to Danny. Only Kilgarvan supporters were encouraged to vote Healy-Rae in order of their personal choice. <\/p>\n

The brothers are the sons of the late Jackie-Healy Rae, the former Fianna F\u00e1il stalwart who went Independent after failing to secure the party nomination to contest the 1997 election. He won the seat and went on to prop up two Bertie Ahern-led Fianna F\u00e1il governments, making a big name for himself for the all-important constituency concessions extracted from the then taoiseach as well as for his trademark cap and wily turn of phrase. <\/p>\n

\"TheThe Healy-Rae TD brothers in action in D\u00e1il Eireann. File photograph: D\u00e1il \u00c9ireann TV <\/p>\n

Rival South Kerry candidates in 1997 included Aidan O\u2019Connor, a journalist then aged 23 who unsuccessfully ran for Fine Gael. <\/p>\n

O\u2019Connor tells of attending a party meeting in a remote location late one Saturday in the middle of the campaign. Word soon came through that he should dash to Killarney because his rival Jackie Healy-Rae, then well into his 60s, was holding court with gumption in a local nightclub with microphone in hand. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe knew there were votes in nightclubs and not in branch meetings of the political faithful on a Saturday night,\u201d said O\u2019Connor, now chief reporter with Kerry\u2019s Eye. <\/p>\n

The knack for campaigning has been picked up by a new generation \u2013 and close family supporters. Another two Independent councillors are affiliated with the Healy-Raes, Sam Locke and \u201cSpeedy\u201d Nolan. <\/p>\n

In addition to the younger Jackie Healy-Rae\u2019s council membership, Danny\u2019s son Johnny Healy-Rae is a councillor and so too is his daughter Maura Healy-Rae. <\/p>\n

\"OneOne of the Healy-Rae businesses in Kilgarvan, Co Kerry. Photograph: Anne Lucey <\/p>\n

Johnny Healy-Rae is now the main figure in Healy Rae Plant Hire. Company net assets were worth \u20ac4.6 million at the end of 2024, the year Danny turned 70 and stepped down as director from its board. <\/p>\n

Public records show this business received \u20ac501,000 for work for Kerry County Council in 2025 and \u20ac384,000 in 2024. In the same two years it received \u20ac334,135 for work for Cork County Council.<\/p>\n

Kilgarvan was quiet one morning this week, with no pedestrians and little but the sound of a Healy-Rae Plant Hire truck rumbling through the village. <\/p>\n

[\u00a0Miriam Lord: Driven demented by the infernal D\u00e1il bells \u2013 and Danny Healy-Rae\u2019s NokiaOpens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n

Trade has been going on here for centuries: \u00d3 S\u00failleabh\u00e1in\u2019s pub in the village traces roots on the site to Jack Rogers in 1774. The original family name is Healy, the Rae derived from a local townland when it was a common practice to distinguish families in that way. <\/p>\n

The Jackie Healy-Rae Bar, run by Danny and his family, dominates Main Street, with a large sign over the premises \u201cwishing the Kerry team best of luck\u201d. <\/p>\n

A photo of Danny bears the legend: \u201cI\u2019m on your side.\u201d <\/p>\n

\"FamilyFamily business: Danny Healy-Rae at the family\u2019s bar in Kilgarvan. File ohotograph: Paulo Nunes dos Santos\/NYT <\/p>\n

Around the corner is Michael\u2019s shop and filling station, with a large poster of the TD beside it citing \u201chard work, experience, common sense\u201d.<\/p>\n

Known as shrewd and canny political operators, who see politics as a service, the Healy-Raes now have strength in numbers in the local authority. <\/p>\n

\u201cThey are a well-oiled machine and it works very well,\u201d said Labour councillor Marie Moloney, leas-Cathaoirleach of the council. <\/p>\n

She readily accepted it was difficult to be up against them. <\/p>\n

\u201cThey are some opponents. They are an absolute powerhouse,\u201d she said. \u201cThey have plenty of numbers and they get to cover all of the constituency.\u201d<\/p>\n

What is Michael Healy-Rae\u2019s property portfolio worth?<\/p>\n

Calculating the value of Michael Healy-Rae\u2019s extensive property portfolio presents a challenge because the D\u00e1il register of members\u2019 interests lacks precision on the location and size of the real estate in question. <\/p>\n

Still, it is possible to make a rough estimate by examining Central Statistics Office figures on recent property deals. The estimate, which excludes Healy-Rae\u2019s commercial property and student-housing interests, points to a possible valuation of some \u20ac5.6 million on his residential and guest house portfolio. <\/p>\n

The CSO data sets out the median price of housing sales in December in the area of each Eircode routing key. Median describes the midpoint in the range of prices recorded in the month. The routing key is made of the first three letters and digits in the Eircode. <\/p>\n

The entirety of Healy-Rae\u2019s property is in Co Kerry. He has several holdings in Killarney, Kilgarvan, Kenmare and Barraduff, all covered by Eircode routing key V93. The remainder in Tralee and Castleisland are covered by routing key V92. <\/p>\n

CSO data shows the median price of V93 residential property sold in December was \u20ac332,500. The comparable figure for V92 property was \u20ac270,000. <\/p>\n

Healy-Rae declared five residential units in Killarney, four houses and one apartment. Also declared were four houses in Kilgarvan and unquantified \u201capartments\u201d. For the purposes of this estimate we take this to mean two apartments, giving a total of six Kilgarvan units. Also declared were one house in Kenmare and one in Barraduff. <\/p>\n

All told, that makes 12 V93 units, suggesting a rough value of \u20ac3.99 million. <\/p>\n

The Minister of State declared one rental house in Tralee and unquantified separate rental rooms in the town. Also declared were three Tralee guest houses. Leaving out the rental rooms, we take this as four Tralee residential properties. In addition, he has two houses for rent in Castleisland. <\/p>\n

That means six V92 units, suggesting a rough value of \u20ac1.62 million. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A man in Dublin recalls an unexpected encounter with local politics done the Healy-Rae way. He has no…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":345619,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[15049,23881,895,61,60,7727,24878,43,12636],"class_list":["post-345618","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ireland","tag-dail-eireann","tag-danny-healy-rae","tag-fianna-fail","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-kerry","tag-michael-healy-rae","tag-news","tag-oireachtas"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/345618","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=345618"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/345618\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/345619"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=345618"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=345618"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=345618"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}