AVERAGE prices for second hand homes in Clare have increased to €235,000 in the last twelve months.
An 8.3 percent rise in the price of the average second-hand three-bed semi in Co Clare has been recorded in the last twelve months with the average price now €235,000.
Prices remained unchanged this quarter across the county, while the average time taken to reach sale agreed was eight weeks, the Q1 REA Average House Price Index shows.
“We are seeing limited stock, with purchasers taking longer to revert with initial offers,” explained Liam Browne of REA Paddy Browne, Ennis. “There is currently a high demand for good quality three and four-bed units. The rental market is in need of incentives to retain and attract new investors”.
Across the county, 50 percent of purchasers were first-time buyers, while a total of 10 percent of sales in the county this quarter were attributed to landlords leaving the market.
Additionally, the survey found A-rated BER properties in the county are commanding 15 percent price increases in comparison to C-rated properties.
The REA Average House Price Index concentrates on the sale price of Ireland’s typical stock home, the three-bed semi, giving an accurate picture of the second-hand property market in towns and cities countrywide.
The actual selling price of a three-bed, semi-detached house across the country rose by 1.5 percent in the past three months to €364,747. This represents a 7.67 percent annual rise, down slightly from the 9 percent increase registered six months ago.
With energy prices coming into focus, agents are reporting that there is a renewed focus on heating costs, with the A-rated v C-rated BER price premium rising to 13 percent, up from 10 percent at the end of December.
Actual selling prices in Dublin city rose by 1.6 percent in the last three months, with the average three-bed semi in the capital’s postcode areas now selling at €595,453, a 6.6 percent annual rise.
The percentage of first-time buyers purchasing in Dublin has dropped from 50 percent to 39 percent in the past six months, with agents citing a wait-and-see policy from buyers around the changes in rental legislation.
Selling prices in Ireland’s major cities outside Dublin rose by 1.2 percent to an average of €378,250, a 6.5 percent annual increase, with homes selling in four weeks on average.
Homes in the country’s large towns rose by 2 percent this quarter and 9 percent annually to an average of €281,287, while prices in commuter counties rose by 1 percent to €377,185.
