Take your pick for £113,000 (€143,480) - a tiny one-bedroom apartment with a bachelor kitchen in the Dublin suburbs or a good-sized three-bedroom semi with your own front and back garden in Drogheda.

There is a frequent commuter train service from Drogehda to Dublin. Granted, it is standing room only at peak times, but the DART is also crowded, while the M50 roundabouts can be a nightmare at peak times.

Competition has been so keen on recent Dublin schemes that builders are throwing in extras like electrical equipment and timber decks to encourage sales. Prices have fallen on some sites, but still can't compare with the bargains to be found further afield.

This perception that Drogheda is a long trek from the capital has kept house prices at an affordable level. No glamorous extras here, but first-time buyers can pick up a three-bed terraced house near the bus station for £106,950 (€135,800) from Con O'Donohue.

Three-bed semis are also selling on the north-eastern side of town for £113,950 (€144,690), through joint agents Peter Daly and Robert B Daly. Drogheda apartments are about 25 per cent cheaper than in Dublin, with two-bedroom units at Riverbank being sold by Ross McParland at prices from £89,995 (€126,622).

While the market is definitely cooling, interest rates have never been lower and agents are pitching hard for sales. First-time buyers with no house to sell are in a particularly advantageous position. "Prices have flexed a bit by around £2,000 (€2,539) and that has worked very well. Those that didn't drop got stuck," says Drogheda agent Fintan Sullivan. Frank Flynn of Robert B Daly is convinced the downturn is "not as bad as people think".

"Drogheda properties always do well, even when there's a slowdown. Some people who had deposits on two-bedroom apartments in the north Dublin suburbs have taken their money back and gone for a house with a garden here," he says.

There is a wide variety of house styles available in Drogheda - one of the reasons competition is less fierce then in the city, although that will come, says Carol Mulligan from Ross McParland. One thing agents agree on is that builders are now prepared to wait until buyers sell their own houses before finalising the sale.

For some there are definite advantages in moving right out of the city. Beyond the urban sprawl, these towns are separate communities with a history and character all their own. Drogheda's quays have sprung to life with smart new cafes and restored riverside warehouses. Everywhere, there are links with the past. Narrow streets run down to the river form the twin-towered St Laurence's Gate and remnants of old friaries still exist among the artisan cottages behind the town centre.

Both Meath and Louth county councils control development outside the town limits. Until now, the Meath side of the river has allowed lower densities, creating a demand for properties on the Dublin side of the river. The fact that the railway station is here is another plus.

Equally desirable are new estates on the western and northern edges of the town, close to the new bypass currently under construction. Termon Abbey, where three-bedroom semis cost £113,950 (€144,690), has a proposed link to the new bypass.

Weekend viewers have a good selection of new developments to visit. There are 10 three- and four-bedroom semis at Termon Abbey from £113,950 (€144,690) through Peter Daly and Robert B Daly.

Gunne and Robert B Daly are jointly showing four-bedroom semis at Lagavooren Manor, priced from £139,950 (€177,700). Right in the centre of town at Haymarket Wharf on John Street, Sullivan Property Consultants is showing two-bedroom townhouses from £124,950 (€158,080).

Sullivan is also handling two-bedroom apartments and duplexes at Bryanstown Manor off the Dublin Road, starting at £109,999 (€139,670) and the last four-bedroom semi at Greenpark, asking £131,950 (€167,540).

Knockbrack is a development off the Donore Road, where 900 sq ft three-bedroom terraced houses are selling from £106,950 (135,800) through Con O Donoghue. Two schemes handled by Ross McParland have a good sales track record. Three-bedroom semis at Highlands cost from £126,995 and four-bedroom detached houses from £179,995 (€228,550).

Ross McParland continues to market Riverbank - a development of duplexes and townhouses with river frontage. Prices are from £89,995 (€114,270) for two-bed apartments, £111,995 (€142,200) for three-bed duplexes and £114,995 (€146,010) for three-bed townhouses.

Drogheda agents have noticed an increase in the numbers of Dubliners moving to the area, with around 40 per cent of new house sales to out-of-town buyers this year.