Murphy New Homes is marking a major milestone in 2026, celebrating 50 years as a limited company and over 60 years since the business built its first home. From its headquarters in Clonmeen, Banteer, Co Cork, the family-run company has grown into one of Ireland’s leading design-and-build specialists, delivering hundreds of homes every year while maintaining the values and standards that have defined the Murphy name for generations.
Today, Murphy New Homes employs 60 direct staff and works alongside more than 100 trusted subcontractors. In total, over 600 employed. Despite this scale, it remains very much a family business. Seven direct family members are actively involved in the company, which is now in its third generation.
Managing Director Willie Murphy continues to lead the organisation, supported by the next generation of the family, including his daughter Aisling, who serves as Director alongside her siblings Aoife and Liam.
The longevity of the business is a source of pride for the Murphy family and reflects decades of commitment to quality construction and customer satisfaction.
“It’s 50 years established this year as a limited company, and more than 60 years since we built our first house,” Aisling Murphy told Building Ireland.
The company’s evolution over those six decades has been significant. What began as a local building enterprise has developed into a highly respected residential construction business with a reputation extending far beyond its Cork base.
However, according to Aisling, the principles that built the company remain unchanged.
“My father, Willie, is a true jack of all trades, with a wealth of knowledge covering every aspect of the business, from the office to site.” she said.
“As the company has gotten bigger, my sister Aoife, brother Liam and I have each taken on our own roles within the company and benefited from his experience and expertise. He’s taught us everything we know, so I feel, as the company has grown, between the three of us in our own areas we’ve been able to maintain the standard he created at a bigger level.”
That transfer of knowledge from one generation to the next has played a critical role in ensuring continuity as the business has expanded. While the construction industry has changed dramatically over the decades, Murphy New Homes has successfully adapted by combining traditional values with modern systems, technology and management practices.
The company is currently experiencing strong demand for its services and continues to grow steadily. However, rather than pursuing rapid expansion, the focus is firmly on sustainable growth that protects the quality of the finished product and the customer experience.
“Luckily, we’re doing very well,” said Aisling. “The business is growing and in the last couple of years we’ve been trying to invest in things like scheduling and internal systems. Health and Safety, as you grow, is something that you need to be on top of. A big focus for us over the last number of years has been growing the team with the number of clients so that the quality remains the same, the experience remained as good as it always was and, ultimately, deliver the same package even though we were expanding.”
As construction activity increases across Ireland and demand for new housing remains strong, Murphy New Homes has prioritised investment in systems and people. The company recognises that growth brings additional complexity and that maintaining standards requires continual improvement in project management, communication and operational oversight.
That measured approach is reflected in the company’s ambitions for the future.
“We are, of course, looking to grow, but want to do it in a measured way that doesn’t compromise quality or customer experience,” said Aisling.
“So slow and steady growth is what we’re aiming for, and that’s been the focus over the last few years.”
The company’s core strength remains its one-off housing division, an area where Murphy New Homes has developed considerable expertise and established a strong reputation over many years.
The scale of activity is substantial, with projects progressing simultaneously across multiple locations and at varying stages of development.
“We would have over 300 one-offs on the go at any one time through various stages,” Aisling outlined. “As you could imagine, that takes a lot of scheduling and managing, an area we have developed through our scheduling team and site foreman.”
Managing such a large portfolio of individual homes requires significant organisational capability, experienced personnel and robust systems.
The company’s design-and-build model provides clients with a comprehensive service, managing everything from initial concepts and planning applications through to construction and final handover. This integrated approach has proven particularly attractive for homeowners seeking a streamlined building experience and a single point of responsibility throughout the process.
While one-off homes remain the primary focus, Murphy New Homes is also active in residential development projects. The company currently has a 35-unit scheme under construction in Kerry Pike, Co Cork, while additional development opportunities continue to emerge through the planning process.
“We specialise in small exclusive to medium-sized estates. We have 35 units in Kerry Pike that are flying up at the moment, with other projects in the pipeline, but our primary focus would be the one-offs at the moment.”
The ability to successfully deliver both bespoke individual homes and larger residential developments demonstrates the breadth of expertise that exists within the organisation.
However, Murphy New Homes remains selective about the projects it undertakes, ensuring that growth does not come at the expense of quality.
Perhaps the greatest measure of the company’s success is the loyalty it continues to enjoy among its customers. Over decades of building homes, Murphy New Homes has developed a reputation that continues to generate repeat business and recommendations, often across multiple generations of the same family.
“A testament to that is I have people coming into me that are sons or daughters of people that my father would’ve built for, so I’m getting the next generation of clients coming into me,” said Aisling.
“That’s a testament to the quality and how happy people 20, 30 or 40 years ago were with their houses and still are.”
Few endorsements are more powerful than a family returning to the same builder decades after their parents first entrusted them with a home. It speaks not only to the quality of construction but also to the relationships that Murphy New Homes has developed with its clients over the years.
As the company continues to grow, Aisling is keen to acknowledge the contribution made by the wider team. While the Murphy family remains at the heart of the business, the company’s success is equally dependent on its employees, subcontractors and long-standing supply chain partners.
“Expanding slowly and maintaining the quality is always our number one priority,” she said. “As well as that, maintaining customer experience, slow steady growth and keeping the staff we have on board.”
She believes the company’s reputation is built collectively by everyone involved in delivering a project.
“The houses are a credit to them as much as they are a credit to us. The quality that they provide is what gives us the name that we have, so we couldn’t do any of it without all the subcontractors and people that we work with every day.”
That appreciation for the wider workforce reflects a culture that has helped sustain the business through changing economic conditions, evolving regulations and significant growth. It is also indicative of a company that understands construction is ultimately a people-driven industry where quality outcomes depend on the skill, dedication and professionalism of those delivering the work.
As Murphy New Homes celebrates its golden anniversary as a limited company, it does so from a position of strength. Demand remains strong, project pipelines are healthy and the business continues to attract new clients while benefiting from repeat customers and referrals built up over decades.
Yet despite its success, the company remains committed to the same principles that have guided it since the first Murphy-built home was completed 70 years ago: quality workmanship, strong customer relationships and steady, sustainable growth.
In an industry often characterised by rapid change, that consistency has become one of Murphy New Homes’ greatest strengths. As the next generation takes on increasing responsibility and the company continues to evolve, the foundations laid by previous generations remain firmly in place, ensuring the Murphy name continues to be associated with quality homebuilding for many years to come.
Murphy New Homes
Clonmeen,
Banteer,
Co Cork,
P51 TV08.
Tel: 029 56311
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.mgroup.ie
This article was published in Building Ireland Magazine, Autumn 2026, Vol 12 No 10
