Double digit property price rises continue across Ireland

Property prices in Ireland are continuing upward with a rise of 12.1% nationally in the 12 months to October 2017 and a rise of 11.6% in Dublin, the latest official figures show.

The October annual rise compares with 12.2% in September and is substantially more than the 7.5% recorded in the 12 months to October 2016, the data from the Central Statistics Office shows.

A breakdown of the figures show that prices for apartments in Dublin increased by 12.1% and the highest house price growth was in South Dublin at 14.4% while the lowest was in Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown at 9.7%.

Property prices in the rest of Ireland increased by 12.8% year on year with house prices up 12.5% over the period and apartments up 15.9%. The biggest increase was in the West region with a rise of 15.8% and the lowest was in the Midland region with a rise of 8%. Apartment prices in the Rest of Ireland increased 15.9% in the same period.

Overall, the national index is 23.7% lower than its highest level in 2007. Dublin property prices are 24.7% lower than their February 2007 peak, while residential property prices in the rest of Ireland are 29.6% lower than their May 2007 peak.

From the trough in early 2013, prices nationally have increased by 70.2%. In the same period, Dublin property prices have increased 86.4% and prices in the rest of Ireland are 61.9% higher.

In the 12 months to October, the median price paid was €220,000. The highest prices were in Dublin at €342,000 and of the four administrative areas of Dublin, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown had the highest median price at €513,500 and Fingal the lowest at €310,000.

Outside Dublin, the highest median prices were in Wicklow at €298,750 and Kildare at €265,590. The lowest median prices were in Longford at €76,000 and Roscommon at €85,000.

According to Alan McQuaid, chief economist at Merrion Stockbrokers, the double digit price increases are set to continue well into 2018. ‘Housing has now overtaken health as the main political hot potato. The key focus in Budget 2018 was on measures and initiatives that should help alleviate the problems, but things won’t change overnight,’ he said.

‘One can argue over the merits of the proposals announced but at least the Government has taken a step in the right direction, with an acknowledgement that something dramatic needs to be done and sooner rather than later,’ he added.

Sherry FitzGerald, one of the Ireland’s largest estate agents has warned that the number of homes available to buy in towns and cities is now at a critically low level.

Meanwhile figures from the Central Bank in Ireland show that the number of homes in negative equity is just a quarter of what it was at the end of the crash but that still amounts to nearly one in 10 of all mortgages, which is high by international standards.

Negative equity loans accounted for just 9.6% of all home loans in the third quarter of 2017, equating to 75,000 mortgages. This is down from a post-crash peak of 39.1% or 320,000 mortgages in the final quarter of 2012.