Property prices fall for third month in a row

Prices were down by 0.6pc, despite rising in the year to March, according to the Central Statistics Office.

In the year to March prices were up 3.9pc, a much slower rate of increase than in previous months.

Prices in Dublin rose by 1.7pc in the past year, and prices outside Dublin were up by 5.7pc.

The property market is slowing down as mortgage rate hikes impact the market.

European Central Bank interest rates have gone up seven times since the summer, with the latest one this month.

Another two 0.25 percentage point rises are expected before the end of the summer.

This is hitting what first-time buyers can afford.

But there purchase activity is also been buoyed by the State’s First Home and Help-to-Buy schemes.

Statistician in the CSO prices division, Viacheslav Voronovich, said: “Residential property prices rose by 3.9pc in the 12 months to March 2023, down from 5.1pc in the year to February 2023, and from the high values of 15.1pc in the 12 months to February and March 2022.”

He said the region outside of Dublin that saw the largest rise in house prices was the Border area of Cavan, Donegal, Leitrim, Monaghan, Sligo, at 8.4pc, while at the other end of the scale, the Mid-West are of Clare, Limerick, Tipperary, saw a 2.8pc rise.

The CSO said that in March, 4,132 dwelling purchases by households at market prices were filed with the Revenue Commissioners, an increase of 5.4pc compared with the 3,921 purchases in March.

Households paid a median, or mid-point, price of €310,000 for a residential property in the year to March.

The lowest median price paid for a dwelling was €154,000 in Longford, while the highest was €635,000 in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown.

The most expensive Eircode area Blackrock with a median price of €750,000, while Ballyhaunis had the least expensive price of €126,000.

Despite the slowdown in the market, the national index has now reached the value of 166.2, which is 1.6pc above its highest level at the peak of the property boom in April 2007.

Dublin residential property prices are 8.7pc lower than their February 2007 peak, while residential property prices in the Rest of Ireland are 2.1pc higher than their May 2007 peak.

Property prices nationally have increased by 126.6pc from their trough in early 2013.

Dublin residential property prices have risen by 126pc from their February 2012 low.

Residential property prices in the Rest of Ireland are 135pc higher than at the trough, which was in May 2013.