Limerick estate agency expands its reach into the Rebel County

LIMERICK estate agency Real Estate Alliance (REA) Dooley has taken over an auctioneering firm in Charleville.

REA Dooley, headed by well-known local auctioneer Pat Dooley, has acquired the long-established Sherry Fitzgerald Walsh business, which has operated in the north Cork town since 1999.

Mr Dooley has been in the property industry for 25 years, founding Dooley Group in 2009, opening its first office in the city centre in 2012.

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This was followed six years ago by an outlet in Newcastle West.

In the Charleville office, Mr Dooley will be joined by Derry Walsh, a former director of Sherry Citzgerald Walsh, as well as Cathy Dunne, property management, plus north Cork resident Jane Foley Murphy, who has been with REA Dooley for a decade.

“This is a fantastic addition to our group, and there is no doubt that the marketing and branding strength of REA, allied to our local knowledge, has given us the confidence to acquire such a long-standing business in the Cork market,” said Mr Dooley.

REA Dooley deals with sales, lettings and valuations in all property sectors – residential, agricultural and commercial.
“While residential is our main business, our portfolio of agricultural listings is ever increasing,” said Mr Dooley.

“I am from a farming background and many of our REA members would have agricultural sales as their forte which enables us to benefit from combined advertising in media. The land market is similar to the residential sector at the moment where you have high demand meeting low supply,” the auctioneer added.

He pointed out the average price of good grazing land in the Limerick and north Cork area is around €14,000 per acre – a figure that has increased steadily over the last number of years.

“While milk and cattle prices remain steady, land values will continue to be strong,” Mr Dooley explained.

He said more new homes need to be built in Charleville to cater for first-time buyers.

“The trader upper market is also there but can be very much chain dependent at times where the trader upper has to sell before they buy,” he added in a statement.