House prices up nationally for the first time in eight years

The country’s two-speed property price recovery has become a three-speed one, with a number of counties joining Dublin’s turnaround as others continue to suffer.

Across the country, asking prices have risen for the first time in eight years. However, this masks an irregular growth pattern between urban and rural areas.

Statistically, rising expectation in a small number of counties has created the impression of a universal improvement for those hoping to sell their homes.

This is because the number of houses on the market in these heavily-populated areas is far greater than the rest of Ireland.

The Myhome.ie index has underscored the problems facing house-hunters in Dublin as asking prices rose by 4.5% between March and June, the largest increase since 2006.

This trend has now spread to the commuter belt particularly in Wicklow and Kildare.

As predicted by the Nama chairman, Frank Daly, in January, Cork has been the first county outside the Dublin-region to see a noticeable return to growth. The Myhome.ie index recorded a 2.7% rise for the city and county when all types of properties were accounted for.

The website uses three- bedroom semi-detached houses as a benchmark to compare trends in various regions. In Tipperary and Offaly, asking prices fell over 8%, while the drop off in Limerick, Waterford, and Kerry was above 3%.

The website’s report was written by Caroline Kelleher for DKM Economic Consultants. She said the lack of activity in construction means there are not going to be enough properties coming onto the market in the near future to temper the demand.

Angela Keegan, managing director of Myhome.ie, said there was a noticeable gap between the counties along the route of the Liffey and the rest of the country.

However, she said the percentage difference is similar to what was experienced before the bust. “While this is an important landmark on the road to recovery, we are still much closer to the start of that journey then the finish,” she said.