Prices of older Dublin houses still soaring

Older houses in Dublin are still appreciating rapidly, but the rate of price increase for newly built homes has slowed, according to official figures.

The average price of a secondhand house in the city rose by 26 per cent in the first nine months of this year - up from £116,776 in the final three months of last year to £147,615. The figures, released by the Department of the Environment yesterday, show Dublin second-hand houses have more than doubled in value since 1995, when the average price was "only" £70,045.

Newly-built Dublin homes have also been rising in value - up from £112,401 in the first three months of the year, to £127,071 in the third quarter. In the Republic as a whole, the average price of newly-built homes has risen from £91,583 in the first quarter to £97,614 in the third quarter.

The Minister of State for Housing and Urban Renewal, Mr Robert Molloy, said the rate of increase in new house prices had fallen significantly in the third quarter. "In the three months to September 30th, new house prices nationally rose by just 1.8 per cent, compared with a rise of 4.7 per cent in the previous three months.

"In the Dublin area, new house prices rose by only 2.2 per cent, compared with 10.6 per cent in the quarter to June 30th."

The Government will welcome these figures as evidence the measures introduced after the Bacon report are calming prices.

With prices rising monthly, many house-hunters who began searching in January but did not buy are now effectively priced out of homes that were then within their reach.

It was an exceptional year for house-builders, with over 40,000 new homes built throughout the State, and an estimated 3,000 apartments in the Dublin area alone. Demand for new homes has remained strong to the end of the year and there is still likely to be a shortage of starter homes on new estates in the new year.

However, the supply of new houses is expected to jump next autumn following the servicing and zoning of new sites in the suburbs, mainly in the north and west.

Dublin's average second-hand price of £147,615 compares with a state-wide average of £110,321; Cork's £86,728; Galway's £98,994; Limerick's £77,457 and Waterford's £73,023.

The trends shown in the official figures are supported by the Irish Auctioneers' & Valuers' Institute (IAVI) annual survey, which claims house prices in some sectors have risen by as much as 40 per cent in the last 12 months.

The biggest increase, according to the survey, was for second-hand four/five-bedroom houses in Dublin, which rose by 40 per cent, well above the State-wide average of 23 per cent.