The figures showed that the wealthiest 10 per cent of households held \u20ac645 billion or 48.6 per cent of the total.<\/p>\n
This was five times the wealth held by the bottom 50 per cent of households which stood at \u20ac117.8 billion or 8.9 per cent of the national total.<\/p>\n
Opposition politicians said the Central Bank figures showed Ireland was a very unequal society, with renewed calls for the introduction of greater taxation on wealth.<\/p>\n
The data also shows the total wealth of Irish households has jumped by almost 43 per cent since 2021 \u2013 from \u20ac847 billion to \u20ac1.25 trillion. <\/p>\n
This comes despite the recent period of inflation and is, in the main, a function of higher real-estate values. Increased savings rates during the pandemic also played a role.<\/p>\n
The latest figures showed housing wealth reached \u20ac855 billion in the first quarter, representing 68.5 per cent of total household wealth.<\/p>\n
[\u00a0One in 10 Irish households have net wealth of more than \u20ac1mOpens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n The total value of housing assets increased by \u20ac15.2 billion from the previous quarter and was up by \u20ac308 billion or 56 per cent since 2021, largely due to what the bank described as \u201cpositive revaluations of existing housing assets\u201d.<\/p>\n The figures showed financial assets owned by the household sector decreased by \u20ac8.9 billion quarter on quarter \u201cas negative revaluations more than offset investment in the period\u201d.<\/p>\n Household net worth is calculated by adding the total value of the housing stock and financial assets \u2013 such as cash savings, shares, pensions and possessions such as cars and antiques \u2013 and subtracting debt owed or liabilities.<\/p>\n [\u00a0\u2018Retired households\u2019 hold 27% of net wealth in Ireland, says GoodbodyOpens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n It is considered a crude measure of prosperity as it hides the distribution of household assets and liabilities across income groups and age categories.<\/p>\n While the latest figures showed the share of wealth held by the top 10 per cent was nearly 49 per cent, this was down from more than 50 per cent in 2021.<\/p>\n Separate Central Bank figures show the number of millionaire households \u2013 those with net wealth of \u20ac1 million or more \u2013 more than doubled from 5 per cent to 12 per cent between 2013 and 2022, increasing from about 87,000 to 223,000 households over the period.<\/p>\n \u201cSo many families across this county will be bemused by the increase in household wealth recorded in today\u2019s report as they will not be sharing or even getting a look in to this uplift in wealth,\u201d said Sarah McGurrin, head of employee benefits at wealth management firm NFP Ireland. <\/p>\n Ms McGurrin noted the surge in house prices of recent years has buoyed the wealth of many Irish homeowners.<\/p>\n \u201cHowever, the steep rises in house prices also mean that houses remain unaffordable for many,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Responding to the \u201cunsurprising\u201d data, Labour Party<\/a> finance spokesman Ged Nash<\/a> said Ireland had a growing issue with wealth inequality \u201cand this is most evident when it comes to housing\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cIreland has a really poor record on taxing wealth. I am attracted to the idea of a carefully crafted net wealth tax and a renewed focus on wasteful reliefs that have now become a feature of the tax system and that favour the better off,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/1754647931518-c07d65db-55b5-463e-ae51-976300c5837e.jpeg\"\/)
Why is the delivery of vital infrastructure so slow in Ireland?<\/p>\n