Average rents reached a new record high during the first three months of the year, while supply in the rental market is at an all-time low, according to the latest Rental Price Report from property website Daft.ie.

Rents nationally rose by an average of 13.4% in the year to March, with the average monthly rent reaching €1,131 in the first quarter of 2017.

A new all-time high has now been recorded in each of the last four quarters.

Dublin, at €1,668, has the most expensive monthly rent in the country, followed by Wicklow (€1,168), and Kildare (€1,131).

At €517, Leitrim is the county with the cheapest average monthly rent.

The average rent nationwide has risen by 52% since bottoming out in 2011 and, having exceeded its 2008 peak last year, is now 9.9% above the previous high.

Meanwhile, according to the Daft report there were just 3,084 properties available to rent nationwide on 1 May, representing the second-lowest number on record.

Availability has not improved since a low of 3,082 properties was recorded in May of last year.

Minister of State for Housing Damien English has said his department alongside the local authorities are analysing the story behind each vacant property.

Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, he said it “not acceptable” that there have always been 200,000-plus vacant properties over the past 20 years.

He said: “We want to get these vacant properties back into use, but private people own them, they’re not our housing stock.

“We need to try to induce them to bring them forward and encourage them and provide incentives, and yes we will look at penalties if they don’t do that but actually the quickest win is to dangle a carrot and make it attractive for everybody to bring them back into use.”

The Government strategy on empty home re-use will be brought before the Government either this week or next week, he said.

A vacant site levy will come into effect next year, he added.

The Economic Social and Research Institute is predicting that 18,500 properties will be built this year, the minister added.

‘Signs of extreme distress’ in rental market

The report’s author, Ronan Lyons, said the latest figures show the rental market here “continues to exhibit signs of extreme distress.

“Rents are at a new all-time high, while the number of homes available to rent remains at the lowest levels on record,” he added.

Commenting on the introduction of Rent Pressure Zones, which were designed to reduce rent rises in areas where particularly high increases have been seen, Mr Lyons said: “Regulatory measures designed to limit rent increases could only ever have a very limited effectiveness in a market with such a scarcity of supply.

“Indeed, there is evidence to suggest that rent increases for sitting tenants have been only half the size of increases faced by new tenants. The more appropriate solution remains to increase supply.

“This includes both making better use of the existing stock of housing and building substantially more, in particular more apartments.”

The Simon Communities in Ireland said the figures show the private rental market is struggling to cope with demand and is not capable of delivering the housing needed to respond to the current housing and homeless crisis.

National Spokesperson for the Simon Communities Niamh Randall said: “The soaring rents and plummeting supply within the private rented sector must be constantly monitored and addressed.

“These issues are preventing people from finding and sustaining affordable homes within the rental market.”

Rent situation a crisis – Cowen

Fianna Fáil’s spokesperson on housing described the rent situation as an “emergency” and a “crisis”.

Barry Cowen said the Government has compulsory purchase powers as its disposal, which should be “used extensively” and immediately.

Speaking on RTÉ’s Today with Sean O’Rourke, Mr Cowen said these powers are there to address social need and they have the potential to get results.

He said a programme should be initiated by the Minister for Housing and the Department of Housing where “the local authorities should be instructed to start proceedings to compulsorily purchase those properties to bring them into use.”

Mr Cowen said he was referring to the “vacant units, the vacant dilapidated buildings in many villages and towns and cities throughout the country where people are looking to see those come into use.”