The price of an average home in Dublin increased by 2.6% in the second quarter of this year with three bed semi-detached houses selling in as little as three weeks, the latest index data shows.
The average three bed semi-detached now costs €414,500, a rise of €10,000 over the last three months and an increase of 14.1% over the past year, according to the index from the Real Estate Alliance (REA).
REA agents in areas of south Dublin such as Tallaght, Clonskeagh and Dun Laoghaire are reporting that properties which took seven weeks to sell a year ago are now moving to sale agreed in 21 days.
The REA house price survey concentrates on the actual sale price of Ireland’s typical stock home, the three-bed semi, giving an up to date picture of the property market in towns and cities countrywide.
The average semi-detached house nationally now costs €215,269, up 2.5% compared to the first quarter of the year and overall, the average house price across the country has risen by 11.2% over the past 12 months, in contrast to the 4.5% increase registered to the full year to June 2016.
While new building is still in its infancy, new developments on sale in small pockets of the country have had an impact on the price and demand for second hand properties locally, the index report points out.
‘Agents have been reporting that where there are new homes available, the price of second hand properties has been under pressure. Most of our national housing stock is over a decade old, and house purchasers, especially first time buyers, will opt for new builds at a higher spec, even if there is a marked difference in price,’ said REA spokesperson Healy Hynes.
‘Our agents are also reporting that both purchasers and three-bed semi vendors are looking for larger homes, which is having an adverse effect on the supply chain, with the result that time taken to sell is now four weeks on average in Dublin and the major cities, and as low as three in some parts of the capital,’ she added.
The commuter counties Louth, Meath, Kildare, Wicklow, Carlow and Laois continued to rebound after a relatively static end to 2016 and saw an increase of 2.6% in the quarter, with the average house now selling for €223,267.
Prices in the major cities of Cork, Galway, Limerick and Waterford rose by 1.9% in the second quarter of 2017 and 9% on the year, the data also shows, taking average prices to
€311,000, €245,000, €185,000 and €190,000 respectively.
The biggest percentage increases over the past three months was in the country’s smaller rural towns situated outside of Dublin, the commuter belt and the major cities with prices up an average of 2.8% over the quarter, with a three-bed semi now costing €138,183, a rise of 12.3% year on year.
However, uncertainty over Brexit has resulted in a significant downturn in turnover for agents in some border areas. Prices for three bed semis have remained at €85,000 in South Donegal for the past three quarters, but this masks a huge drop off in business from the North.
‘There is an overall hit to confidence and to people’s willingness to make a major financial commitment to property while there is uncertainty over the border,’ said Michael McElhinney of REA Bundoran.
