Average Offaly three-bed semi rises by 10.2% this year

The price of an average three-bed semi in Co Offaly has risen by 10.2% to the end of September this year, according to a national survey carried out by Real Estate Alliance.

The price of an average three-bed semi in the county is now €108,000, a rise of 2.86% over the past 3 months, the Real Estate Alliance Average House Index has found.

Aidan Heffernan of REA Heffernan says that there is an increase in first-time buyers and a lot of activity at the lower end of the market.

“We are seeing evidence that the banks are providing more finance. We are also seeing an increase in landlords selling properties.”

The Real Estate Alliance Average house index concentrates on Ireland’s typical stock home, the three-bed semi, giving a picture of the property market in towns and cities countrywide.

The average price of a three-bed semi is now 179,981 nationally including Dublin, an increase of 26,925 (17.59%) on the Dec 13 figure of 153,056.

“Prices are continuing to rise at a pace in Dublin, but our agents are reporting that the panic buying seems have gone out of the market, with less people at viewings and houses taking a week longer on average to sell,” said REA CEO Philip Farrell.

“The three-tier market that REA surveys have identified is still continuing, with the commuter areas outside Dublin, and larger urban areas such as Galway and Cork growing at twice the rate in the first nine months (21.88%) than the rest of the country at 11.47%.”

There has been a sharp rise in the amount of private homes for sale nationally, with the percentage of distressed properties on the market dropping for the first time in the life of the survey.

Just 37% of properties on the market are now distressed, down from a yearly high of 45% in June.

There is further evidence that the banks are financing house buyers to a greater extent with the amount of cash transactions dropping from an average of 66% in December 13 to 50% in September 2014.

“We are also seeing investors being influenced by the end of December deadline for obtaining capital gains tax relief over the next seven years,” said Philip Farrell.

“We also feel that the recent proposals on mortgage finance announced by the Central Bank could have a direct impact on the market from January 2015.”

Real Estate Alliance (REA) is Ireland’s leading property group of Chartered Surveyors with over 50 branches nationwide, comprising many of the country’s longest-established auctioneers and estate agents.