Property prices are down slightly but experts say there’s no sign of a ‘big drop’
The pandemic has had little effect on house prices.
Figures released by the Central Statistics Office show that residential property prices decreased by just 0.5% nationally in the year to July, despite major disruption caused by a lockdown and the impact of social distancing rules on viewings.
There was no change in the year to June and an increase of 2.2% in the twelve months to July 2019, with the average price of a house in Ireland coming in at €260,000.
Meanwhile, average monthly rents have risen by 1.2% over the past 12 months to €1,412.
“The latest property price index has revealed a relatively robust property market which does not appear, at this time, to be heading for the big drop that some predicted,” said Trevor Grant, Chair of the Association of Irish Mortgage Advisors.
Residential property prices decrease by 0.5% in the year to Julyhttps://t.co/TWZiXNFhGd #CSOIreland #Ireland #Housing #PropertyPrices #HousePrices #IrishBusiness #BusinessStatistics #BusinessNews pic.twitter.com/F0DPMHNh87
— Central Statistics Office Ireland (@CSOIreland) September 16, 2020
“There continues to be a significant shortage of homes in Ireland and there is no sign of this abating. There is still a cohort of potential homeowners that have remained fully employed throughout Covid, who are actively looking for a home and who are successfully applying for and securing mortgages.”
Overall, residential property outside of the capital are 20.2% lower than their May 2007 peak. The region outside of Dublin that saw the largest rise in house prices was the South-West at 4.3% – at the other end of the scale, the South-East saw a 1.6% decline.
Mr Grant said a significant number of first-time buyers, particularly in Dublin, traditionally come from business sectors such as digital, IT, financial and public sector, which have proved resilient during Covid-19 and the prospect of buying a new home is still as real for them as it ever was.
“The volume of applications received from first-time buyers and movers by our members, particularly over the past three months, has demonstrated a strong level of demand.”
