Housing prices have dropped some 4 per cent during the third quarter, according a report published today from property portal MyHome.ie.
The property barometer reveals that the average asking price nationally for property fell by 4.27 per cent, while in Dublin asking prices which were down 5.73 per cent compared to the second quarter.
According to MyHome, the average asking price nationally now stands at €323,180 down 22 per cent since the peak of the market. In the capital, the average figure is €385,993, a fall of 18.5 per cent in the last 12 months, a drop of 27.73 per cent since the peak of the market.
Asking prices in the Dublin market are now at the same level as in 2004, while asking prices in the new and second hand markets are now down by 14 per cent compared to 12 months ago.
Commenting, economist Paul Murgatroyd said: "The trend of a further stabilisation in prices did not materialise during the third quarter as the rate of decrease in asking prices accelerated once again.
"As a result, it is clearly still too soon to call a bottom to the current market cycle although with interest rates remaining very low and prices continuing to fall affordability continues to improve".
"The missing ingredient is confidence however there are tentative signs that consumer confidence is stabilising albeit at very low levels historically."
He added, however, that there was "solid economic evidence" indicating a "stabilisation" in the broader economy.
Angela Keegan, Myhome.ie managing director, said: "The barometer clearly shows that the market is still in favour of buyers at the current time, but sales are still being achieved and property is still moving.
"The impact of lower asking prices has reduced the selling time from seven months to six months nationally since Q2 2009. In addition we know that first time buyers are slowly gaining access to finance for property purchase which is encouraging although their outlook on the future remains extremely cautious at the present time."
The MyHome.ie barometer is compiled from asking price data collected from a quarterly snapshot of active, available properties for sale on MyHome.ie.
Another survey found that asking prices have fallen by up to a third from the peak two-and-a-half years ago.
The Daft.ie report said buyers in Dublin witnessed the biggest drop of 35 per cent (€138,106) from the height of the boom in February 2007. The Meath commuter belt has been almost as badly hit with for sale prices down 31 per cent (€107,236).
Daft.ie, which examines for sale prices of about 12,000 properties, found the average on-the-market offer is €253,000. It also found it is taking twice as long to sell a house now as it was at the height of the boom.
Earlier this week the permanent tsb/ESRI House Price Index revealed more than €75,000 has been knocked off the average price since the peak.