Dublin house sales fall 1.5% as affordability pushes buyers out

The number of houses sold in Dublin fell by 1.5 per cent last year while the overall value of those transactions rose by 4.7per cent compared with 2018, according to a new study,

The slowdown in sales was greatest in Dublin 6 – down 22.3per cent – and Dublin 13 – down 30.1per cent – according to analysis by property website MyHome.ie of the Residential Property Price Register.

The overall fall in transaction numbers last year compares with a 6 per cent increase in 2018 and coincides with a levelling off in property prices as recorded by the CSO last month, with house prices in Dublin falling by 0.9 per cent over the course of 2019.

Transaction levels were poor in a number of residential “hotspots” signalling limited availability of affordable stock to buy in these areas and sellers adopting a wait-and-see approach amid market uncertainty.

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Dublin 6 saw a fall in sales of 22.3 per cent, Dublin 6W fell 12.5per cent, Dublin 3 fell 4.2per cent while Dublin 4 and Dublin 7 increased by just over 2 per cent.

The substantial Dublin 6 decline could be accounted for by the completion of the substantial Marianella development in Rathgar where there were 108 sales in 2018 and just nine in 2019.

The regions of the capital that showed the greatest growth in house sales were in the outer postcodes, where the availability of more affordable new homes are driving activity. Dublin 11 and Dublin 20 recorded the biggest jumps in sales with increases in each of more than 40 per cent. The sale of 45 units at Hampton Wood Square in Ballymun and a 75 per cent increase in transactions in Palmerstown boosted numbers in these areas.

Busiest postcode

For the second year running Dublin 15 was the busiest postcode in Dublin with 1,704 sales, just 0.1per cent down on 2018. In all nine postcodes saw an increase in the value of sales, while 13 recorded a decrease. Overall transactions in the wider county fell just 1.2per cent.

Activity was stronger in city areas shouldering more traditional property strongholds. Sales in Dublin 12 were up 8 per cent reflected boosted by a 10per cent increase in sales in Crumlin and 32 per cent increase in Walkinstown.

Similarly in Dublin 5 sales rose 7per cent with Raheny and Killester accounting for nearly half of all sales in the area, a substantial increase on their 2018 showing.

Angela Keegan, managing director of MyHome.ie, said: "We're noticing two overall trends in Dublin at present. Expensive inner postcodes are seeing either sluggish growth or a decline in sales volumes, while the rise in activity in Dublin 11 and 20 reflects the increased stock in outer postcodes of the city – which was also apparent in our analysis of the Property Price Register in the first half of 2019.

“It is also encouraging to see sales volumes rise in Dublin 12 and 5, reflecting the good housing stock in areas like Crumlin and Walkinstown, as well as Raheny and Killester.”

In all there were 18,523 homes sold in Dublin in 2018 compared with 18,238 last year. The study is based on an analysis of residential Dublin sales in 2019 compared with 2018 as recorded in the Property Price Register.