THE TOTAL NUMBER of properties for sale in Ireland continues to fall, with the latest report from property website Daft.ie finding it’s hit a nine-year low in the last quarter.
Meanwhile, house prices have risen by an average of 5.9% in the year up to March 2016.
In terms of house prices, the divide between Dublin and the rest of the country persists, with prices effectively stable in the capital – rising just 0.9% in the last year – compared to a rise of 9.7% on average outside Dublin.
The national average asking price in the first quarter of 2016 was €210,000, compared to €198,000 a year ago.
In Dublin, prices have risen by an average of €91,000 – or 41% – from their lowest post-Celtic Tiger point in mid-2012. Outside the capital, the average increase has been €37,500, or 28%, since the end of 2013.
And while the situation in Dublin may be stable, it’s a different story in other cities. Compared to this time last year, prices are:
Inflation outside the cities varies from 8.3% in Leinster to 10.4% in Connacht-Ulster.
Availability
At less than 24,000, the total number of properties for sale is at its lowest point since February 2007.
The biggest falls in availability are occurring outside Leinster: across Munster, Connacht and Ulster, there were 13,500 homes for sale in April 2016, compared to almost 21,000 two years previously.
“It is interesting to note that in year-on-year terms, prices are now falling in five Dublin markets – Dublin 2, Dublin 6, Dublin 16, Dublin 18 and South County Dublin,” economist and author of the Daft report Ronan Lyons said in his analysis.
These are some of the most expensive markets in the country and show the effectiveness of the Central Bank rules. Nonetheless, across the country, prices continue to rise, because the increase in population each month is not being matched by an increase in new homes.
Lyons said that addressing the shortage of supply – in particular the high cost base on construction – must be a top priority for the new government.
“Every month, roughly 2,000 new households are formed, each requiring somewhere to live,” Lyons explained
But each month currently sees the construction of at best 1,000 new homes. In Dublin, the figures are even starker – nearly half of all new households are being formed in or around the capital but only 150 or so properties are being built each month in the city.
The Daft.ie report is based on an analysis of properties posted for advertisement on the website and transactions contained in the Residential Property Price Register, matched with listings that previously appeared on Daft. The full version can be viewed here.
Note: Journal Media Ltd has shareholders in common with Daft.ie publisher Distilled Media Group.
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