House prices rise 5.6% but annual growth hits lowest level since January 2024

In Cork and Kerry, house prices rose by 3.7%. Picture: Getty

House prices rose by 5.6% on an annual basis in June, the lowest annual increase since January 2024, according to new figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO).

The annual increase was 0.5 percentage points lower than in May, when prices rose by 6.1%.

The Residential Property Price Index from the CSO showed that house prices in Dublin rose by 3.9% in June, while apartment prices increased by 7%.

Outside Dublin, house prices rose by 6%, while apartment prices increased by 10.2%.

The largest increases in house prices were recorded in Cavan, Donegal, Leitrim, Monaghan and Sligo, where prices rose by 10.5%, followed by the Midlands at 10%.

In Cork and Kerry, house prices rose by 3.7%.

The CSO said the national median price of a dwelling bought in the 12 months to June was €396,000.

The highest median price paid for a dwelling in the 12 months to June was €682,334 in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown, while the lowest was €198,000 in Longford.

The CSO added that, outside Dublin, Wicklow was the most expensive county in which to buy property, with a median price of €475,000, followed by Kildare at almost €500,000.

More than 4,000 purchases filed in June 

Revenue data showed that 4,058 home purchases at market prices were filed in June, a 0.7% increase compared with June 2025 and a 5.1% increase on the 3,861 purchases filed in May 2026.

Existing properties accounted for 73.3% of purchases filed with Revenue during the month, a 3.8 percentage-point decrease compared with June 2025.

The remaining 1,085 homes were new dwellings, an increase of 15.8% compared with June last year.

The total value of household purchases at market prices filed with Revenue was €1.82bn in June, up 6.8% from the €1.71bn filed in June 2025 and May 2026.

There were more than 51,250 home purchases in the year to June 2026.

First-time buyers accounted for 40.4% of these purchases, or 20,716 homes.

Former owner-occupiers bought 25,689 properties, or 50.1%, while non-occupiers accounted for the remaining 4,848 purchases, or 9.8%.

New and existing home prices continue to rise 

Looking at a quarterly basis, the CSO said residential property prices for new dwellings were 6% higher in the second quarter of this year compared with the same period last year.

Prices for existing dwellings were 5.9% higher in the second quarter compared with the same period last year.

Commenting on the index, CSO Prices Division statistician Samantha Walsh said: “The annual increase in residential property prices nationally of 5.6% for June 2026 represents the lowest annual rise since January 2024, when the annual increase was 5.4%.”