A bubble ready to burst or safe as houses?

DO property investors know more than the economists? It seems like a reasonable question to ask as the property market settles in for another bullish run in 2006.

House prices look set to rise by another 15% this year, having slipped by 3% less than 12 months ago.

In Dublin prices are pacing ahead at the rate of 20%, raising fears that investors are going to get badly stung, with rental income increasingly failing to cover mortgage repayments as the interest rate outlook hardens.