Record number of houses built last year

The number of completed new houses in the year 2000 reached a record figure of 49,182 according to new figures out today.

National output was up by 7.1% on the previous year, with over 15,000 dwellings built in Dublin, Kildare, Wicklow and Meath.

Price increases for new and second-hand houses on a national basis stood at 13.8% and 14% respectively.