Ireland has the lowest level of flat dwelling of any country in the European Union, according to research published today.
The Eurostat housing report, which dates from 2009, shows just 3.7 per cent of people in Ireland live in flats or apartments, compared to an EU average of 42 per cent.
In Ireland, 39.1 per cent of people live in detached houses, 57.6 per cent live in semi-detached or terraced houses and 3.1 per cent are in flats or apartments.
Ireland also has one of the lowest overcrowding rates in the EU, with 3.7 per cent, compared to an average of 17.8 per cent.
The research also shows that 13 per cent homes in Ireland are damp, below the EU average of 16 per cent. Some 5.6 per cent of people regard their accommodation as too dark, 0.3 per cent have no toilet and 0.6 per cent have no shower or bath.
Over the 27 EU countries, some 42 per cent of the population lived in a flat or apartments, 34 per cent in a detached house and 23 per cent in a semi-detached or terraced house.
Flats are most common in Latvia, detached houses in Slovenia and semi-detached houses in the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.
