It’s great news for sellers, not so good for would-be buyers.

A new report estimates that house prices in Cork City will increase by four per cent in 2019, having already rocketed by 5.8 per cent in the last twelve months.

According to the Irish Independent/Real Estate Alliance (REA) house price forecast for 2019, estate agents are particularly optimistic about sales on Leeside, with a predicted four per cent rise in Cork City (compared to 2.4 per cent in 2018) and a 3.5 per cent rise expected across the county.

Prices are expected to rise by five per cent in Galway, 2.8 per cent in Dublin City and up to eight per cent in Limerick.

The possibility of a hard Brexit is one of the challenges facing the housing market in the New Year.

Still, house prices rose by €1,000 a month during 2018. According to the latest report by property website daft.ie, the average price of a home in Ireland in the final quarter of the year was €254,000, down 1.1% on the previous quarter.