A sharp rise in house prices in the latter half of the year has led to a year to date increase of 11.9 per cent - double that achieved in 2001 - according to latest property survey published today.
The November edition of the permanent tsb House Price Index - compiled in association with the ESRI - reveals that house prices nationally grew by 1.4 per cent during November, resulting in an increase of 4.2 per cent and 5.5 per cent in the last three and four months respectively.
The average price paid for a house nationally in November was €203,407 while the equivalent price in November 2001 was €183,253.
Commenting on the results, Mr Niall O'Grady, of permanent tsb said: "following a softening of the market in the second half of 2001 when prices began to fall, the recent months have seen strong price increases and we expect the growth for the full year to be in the order of 13 per cent."
He added "While it is too early to forecast the impact of the budgetary changes, we believe that the combination of increased housing supply and easing economic growth will see a moderation in the rate of price growth over the coming months"
Dublin house prices increased by 1.9 per cent, while the price of houses bought outside Dublin rose by 1.1 per cent in November. In October the respective rates of growth were 2.6 per cent and 1.1 per cent. For November 2001 the respective growth rates were -0.9 per cent and -0.3 per cent.
The average price paid for a house in Dublin in November was €267,009 while the equivalent price for a house outside Dublin was €178,654. The equivalent prices in November 2001 were €238,696 and €161,285.
The growth rate of house prices in Dublin and outside Dublin over the year to date were 13.5 per cent and 11.5 per cent respectively.
The average price paid by a first-time buyer and a second-time buyer in November 2002 was €177,502 and €229,430 respectively. The equivalent prices in November 2001 were €162,459 and €205,771.