House prices continue to fall whilst South Co. Dublin shows signs of stability

The average asking price of property in Ireland fell by over 3% in the third quarter of 2012, down 14% from the same period last year, according to the latest Daft.ie House Price Report.  There are large variations around the country, however, with the average asking prices in South County Dublin actually rising by 2.8% in the third quarter and now just 2% lower than the same time last year. The national average asking price now stands at €167,000, down 54% from the peak in 2007.

Between June and September, prices were largely stable in Dublin, where they fell by 0.5%, and in Cork city where prices fell by 0.6%. In Galway and Limerick cities, prices fell by 2.6% and 3.7% respectively. In Waterford city, prices fell sharply in the third quarter, by 9.3%. Outside the cities, asking prices in Munster saw their sharpest fall since the start of the crash, with prices down almost 7% in three months.

Offaly

In the Midlands counties of Laois, Westmeath, Offaly and Longford, asking prices fell 3.4% in the third quarter of the year, compared to a fall of 4.6% between March and June. In Offaly, the average asking price was largely stable between June and September, rising by 0.4%. The average price is now €140,000, a fall of 55% from the peak.

Commenting on the report, Ronan Lyons, Economist at Daft.ie, said: “The latest Daft.ie report confirms that policymakers need to stop thinking of one national property market. Conditions vary dramatically between Dublin, where the number of properties for sale is at its lowest point since early 2007, and large parts of Munster and Connacht, where stock for sale remains very high. This is seen in activity levels, also, with over half of Dublin listings sold or sale agreed within three months, compared to one quarter in many parts of the country.”

The full report is available from http://daft.ie/report and includes a commentary by Dr Padraic Kenna, Lecturer at NUI Galway and author of “Housing Law, Rights and Policy” (Dublin, Clarus Press, 2011).

For further information please contact:
Ronan Lyons – Economist (086 604 5655), Kieran Harte – Marketing (086 047 6112), Daft.ie – media@daft.ie