Average house price in North rises to highest level in 10 years

The average price of a house in the North has risen to its highest level in almost 10 years to hit nearly £140,000 (€163,250).

According to the latest NI House Price Index the cost of buying a home in the North has risen by 4 per in the last year.

The latest index highlights that the most expensive place to buy residential property in Northern Ireland is in the Lisburn and Castlereagh city council area with average prices of £164,900 while the cheapest place to buy a home is in Derry City and Strabane council area with prices ranging from £120,110. The average cost of owning a home in Belfast has also risen to £133,620.

According to Richard Ramsey, Ulster Bank’s chief economist in Northern Ireland, although property prices may be close to the highest they have been in a decade they are still “38 per cent below the ‘freak peak’ of Q3 2007.”

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During the North’s house price boom the average price of a home soared beyond £200,000.

This meant that in terms of the ratio of earnings to house prices the average price of a house was more than nine times what the average full time salary was back in 2007 in Northern Ireland.

According to the latest NI House Price Index the average residential property price is currently 4.9 times the annual gross earnings for a full time employee in the North.