The Indo Daily: Brian O'Driscoll and Amy Huberman Incorporated: The million-euro empire
Now, they're the faces of a €12 million brand machine, selling everything from luxury wine to grinds for Leaving Cert students.
Their secret?
A carefully curated public image, relentless hard work and a knack for commercial timing.
Tabitha Monahan is joined on The Indo Daily by Irish Independent journalist John Meagher to trace how O'Driscoll and Huberman leveraged media savvy and turned it into market dominance.
But fame has a shelf life. Can Brand BOD keep evolving before the public moves on?
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Irish Independent
3 hours ago
- Irish Independent
The Irish Independent's View: New housing excuses sound remarkably similar to the old ones
The minister talked up returning vacant properties to the market and the potential for social housing and rental accommodation. Strategies will include streamlining the planning process, strategic use of land, funds for local authorities and more specific schemes. Construction levies and taxation will also be looked at. To understand the issue better from the inside out, and then to put measures in place that are practical and action-orientated, the minister was meeting with a wide variety of stakeholders. He also acknowledged that things will probably get worse before they get better. If this all sounds remarkably familiar, it's because this account of an interview by the housing minister is almost a decade old. This time nine years ago, the housing minister Simon Coveney was building up towards his big announcement of an action plan for housing. 'Rebuilding Ireland' was published in the summer of 2016 – complete with the commitment to end homelessness. Browne's overhaul of Rent Pressure Zones will arguably make the cost of rent worse Fast forward nine years and the current occupant of the Custom House, James Browne, is talking in strikingly similar terms about the imperative to increase supply. Browne's overhaul of Rent Pressure Zones will arguably make the cost of rent worse, initially, in order to increase the supply in the longer run, thereby making things better. But the minister doesn't appear to have the political wit to acknowledge there are immediate downsides to his plans. The impact of the lack of supply in the market is illustrated today in the Irish Independent/REA Average House Price Index. The survey shows asking prices still rising as buyers become desperate to get a home they can call their own. This summer, the minister will also launch an action plan for housing – the latest iteration of a running theme for a decade. Emerging from the ashes of the Celtic Tiger crash, successive governments of similar hues have failed to sufficiently increase the output of housing to anywhere near the levels required. A record 93,419 houses and apartments were built in 2006 – the highest rate in Europe. Nowadays we seem to be lucky if we break the 30,000 mark. Even the Government's bluff figure of 40,000 is well below that of a generation ago. Whatever bells-and-whistles plan is launched this time will doubtless try to suggest that the initiatives identified are new and therefore deserving of time to bed in and deliver results. It's a hard sell at this stage as the housing excuses wear thin for this Coalition. It is simply not credible to ask the public to ignore what has gone before simply because there is a new minister appointed in a newly formed government. Meet the new boss, he sounds remarkably similar to the old boss. Clear, coherent and credible policies will get a better reception than being told it will be different this time around.
Irish Independent
3 hours ago
- Irish Independent
‘Noticeable slowdown' in viewings of houses in Dublin as average price tag approaches ‘unaffordable' €600,000
Estate agents in Dublin are reporting a marked slowdown in viewers and a lack of interest in homes that are overpriced. This is happening in tandem with a surge in values in the surrounding commuter counties as a wave of more affluent buyers push out of the city to buy a family home and send values surging in these locations. The latest Irish Independent/ REA Average House Price Index has revealed that selling prices in Dublin city rose by 2.6pc in the last three months. But there are far fewer first-time buyers, especially at recent viewings. The average three-bed semi in the capital is now selling at €572,693 – a 9pc annual rise of almost €50,000, while homes in Cork city hit €400,000 for the first time, also pushing the limits of affordability in the southern capital. The Dublin price represents monthly repayments of almost €2,800 per month over a 25-year term while the Cork city price represents monthly payments of circa €2,000, well beyond what average earners and even above-average earners can afford. Meanwhile, three-bed, semi-detached homes in the counties surrounding Dublin clocked up the highest inflation nationwide at just over 1pc a month. They are up 3.1pc in the last three months to €361,319. The commuter belt increases were particularly felt in Kildare, where Newbridge, Naas, Maynooth and Celbridge all experienced super-inflationary, three-monthly price rises of 5pc. The REA Average House Price Index concentrates on the sale price of Ireland's typical stock home, the three-bed semi, giving an accurate picture of the second-hand property market in towns and cities countrywide. The nationwide average price increase in the quarter for three beds was 2.7pc in the past three months, to €347,912. This represents 10.3pc overall annually. ADVERTISEMENT 'Our agents are reporting a noticeable slowdown in viewer numbers in Dublin in the past few weeks, and fewer first-time buyers among them,' said REA spokesperson Seamus Carthy. 'This, coupled with a rise in activity in commuter counties, indicates the price sensitivity of the current market, with buyers maybe hitting an affordability ceiling in some cases. 'And while first-time buyer sales are down 2pc to 45pc in the capital, according to our agents, they have actually risen from 60pc to 68pc in commuter counties. Meanwhile, homes priced too ambitiously in the capital are simply not getting bids. 'Pricing has become vital, with REA McGee in Tallaght and Rathfarnham reporting that a 10pc variance in asking price can be the difference between a property going sale agreed in weeks or sitting on the market for far longer.' The average three-bed semi in Kildare is now selling for €444,750, an increase of €21,000 on the March figure, but €130,000 less than the equivalent property in Dublin city. 'We are seeing strong viewer numbers in Kildare, and if homes are priced correctly, they are going sale agreed in four to five weeks, according to REA Brophy Farrell,' says Mr Carthy. Louth prices increased by €10,000 (3.4pc) in the quarter, a 13pc annual increase, with lack of supply driving residential increases, according to Darina Collins of REA O'Brien Collins. Homes in Cork city hit €400,000 for the first time as prices in the major cities outside the capital rose by an average of 1.5pc to €360,605 in the last three months – an annual rate of increase of 8pc. 'With the scarcity of stock and falling interest rates, we predict the second-hand market will continue to increase in 2025,' said Michael O'Donoghue of REA O'Donoghue & Clarke, Cork, as prices on Leeside increased by 1.3pc this quarter. Homes in Galway city rose by €5,000 to €385,000 (1.3pc), while Limerick (€330,000) and Waterford (€327,419) rose by 1.5pc and 2pc respectively. Homes in the country's large towns continue to show growth nationwide, 2.6pc this quarter and 12pc on last June, to an average of €263,306. But some towns such as Castlebar and Ennis are reporting unprecedented annual rises of over 24pc due to multiple buyers bidding on scarce properties. And there were some towns where inflation for three-bed homes went well above the county average. In Castlebar, prices have risen by 8pc in the last quarter to €265,000, which agents REA McGreal Burke attribute to the extremely low supply, with just 11 properties currently on the market in the entire town. 'What we are seeing repeatedly in our large towns are prices driven by record low supply. In some cases, an extra four or five properties on the market would see more normal sales values achieved,' Mr Carthy said. 'In my own county of Roscommon, supply of desired stock is becoming increasingly low, with demand for ready-to-go family homes at the top of the list,' he added. 'Supply of older stock and refurbishment projects is improving but difficulty securing tradespeople may be dampening purchase desire among some buyers.'
Irish Examiner
a day ago
- Irish Examiner
There's history in the walls of €950k Lisnakilla House near Kinsale
AFTER at least two rounds of building on and building up, there's only faint traces left of the original 100 year old farmhouse here at Lisnacrilla, outside Belgooly on back roads to Kinsale via Brownsmills : What's here now is a sizeable updated and B2 BER-hitting family home on mature gardens of 0.6 of an acre. Now upgraded too to call itself Lisnacrilla House, the detached build has been home to a family for 21 years, having originally purchased a c 185 sq ft modernised home in 2004, when they changed the kitchen, and built a detached and insulated double garage with first floor office and gym: since, they did yet further considerable upgrades and a further extension in 2009 as their family started to expand. Today, one of the surviving 'memories' of the original farmhouse which started day one on this spot is the exposed stone wall in a utility room, contrasting with more modern finishes and creature comforts. Exposed stone speaks of history Now, under its very varied roof line showing the home's evolution in stages, Lisnacrilla houses two working professionals and three teenaged children, with one just through Leaving Cert and college bound. As they enter that life chapter, and facing an emptying nest over the next few years, they've proactively decided to sell …not a bad call as the market currently is so strong, not only in and around Kinsale but nationwide. Rural setting Their home is less than 5kms from Kinsale and just over 20 kms from Cork City and airport, with rural views, anchored with mature trees, while they draw on marine metaphors to explain their move, saying 'we feel it's time to trim the mainsail — to make adjustments that reflect our next phase of life. Lisnacrilla has served as a steadfast vessel through changing tides, and now it's ready to welcome new custodians to continue its story.' It's launched with agent Lawrence Sweeney of Savills who gives a €950,000 guide, so it's pitched into a Kinsale price bracket at that: he says the result of his vendors' labours is 'a stunning fusion of timeless charm and contemporary design, with spacious, light-filled accommodation and luxurious finishes throughout.' It has up to six bedrooms, one at ground level with en suite or optional home office, and the first floor has five off a galleried landing, with three en suites plus main bathroom, with water heated by solar power, helping get the property's B2 BER. At ground are two reception rooms, one at either end and one open to a gable sun room, whilst there's a casual dining room/family room off the Stylecraft-fitted kitchen with deep twin ceramic sinks and black granite tops plus island. This linked area has a powerful 18kw wood-burning Charnwood stove on a raised plinth with metro-style tiling behind and 'is the heart of the home, with panoramic countryside views,' comments Mr Sweeney. There's patio access to an outdoor entertaining area from here, as well as a large utility and pantry, a family den/TV room/home office, plus a reception/dining room with further solid fuel stove. Overall condition is very good, with some pine floors, doors, and ceilings 'of their time,' and a bonus is the substantial double garage with roller shutter door, power, and has two rooms in an overhead loft area, while access is via electric gates. VERDICT: Proximity to Kinsale may help draw attention to Lisnacrilla House.
