Dublin house price growth slower than rest of country

Dublin house prices increased by an average of 0.6 per cent between March and June of this year.

Prices rose by 4.4 per cent in Cork, 3.8 per cent in Galway, 5.1 per cent in Limerick and 3.4 per cent in Waterford, in the second quarter of 2015, according to the Daft.ie website’s house price report.

Outside of major cities, prices were up 2.8 per cent during the same period.

For the country as a whole, the average asking price for a house grew by 1.9 per cent in the second quarter of 2015.

This means that in all but one of the last seven quarters, the average price has risen nationwide, although the pace of growth has slowed from an average of 5 per cent to less than 2 per cent.

The average house price nationwide is now €202,000, compared to a low of €164,000 in mid-2013 and a peak of €370,000 in 2007.

Commenting on the figures, Ronan Lyons, author of the report, said: "The second quarter of 2015 saw the last of those buying under the old mortgage rules and already the Central Bank regulations about borrowing are having a clear impact, not only on overall house price growth, but also on the spread of house prices. In each of the five most expensive markets in the country, Dublin 4, Dublin 6, Dublin 6W, Dublin 14 and South Co Dublin, average prices are more or less unchanged from September 2014, when the Central Bank announced it would be capping mortgages.

“On the other hand, prices in Dublin’s commuter counties have risen by more than 10 per cent in the same nine-month period. A reshuffling of demand from Dublin to elsewhere in the country may help general economic activity outside the capital. However, it does nothing to address the growing supply shortage faced by Dublin’s growing population.”