Property price growth picks up again in May

The housing crisis has dominated Irish political discourse for what feel likes an eternity.

Rapid price growth over the past several years, coupled with a lack of supply and strict mortgage lending rules, have put the dream of home ownership out of reach of many people. 

And unfortunately things don't look like getting much better in the short term.

Despite Brexit, Covid, and now the threat of recession, a chronic shortage of housing means prices continue to go up and up.  

The figures

In the year to May, property prices rose by 14.4% nationally, according to the Central Statistics Office (CSO). Although this was a slight slowdown from the 14.5% growth seen in April, prices picked up speed again on a monthly basis.

Between April and May, prices rose a hefty 0.8% alone - a big jump from the 0.4% increase registered between March and April. 

This is the first time in several months that price growth has picked up on a monthly basis, which suggests the forecasted cooling off in property prices may not materialise as quickly as hoped.

Looking at Dublin alone, prices have risen 11.7% over the past year. The highest house price growth was in Dublin City at 14.1% while the lowest growth was in Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown at 9.2%.

Outside of Dublin, prices have risen by a whopping 16.6% over the past year. The region outside of Dublin that saw the largest rise in property prices was the South-East at 21.5%, while the 'smallest' rise was recorded in the Mid-West at 11.4%.

Property prices for new homes were 6.2% higher in the first quarter of 2022 compared to the same time in 2021. However prices for second-hand homes were 17.8% higher.  

Median sale price

The median price of a home nationally is now €290,000. However in Dublin it's €413,000.

Within the Dublin region, the Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown area has the highest median price at €601,000!

The highest median prices outside of Dublin are in Wicklow (€397,000) and Kildare (€347,025).

The lowest prices are in Longford (€138,000) and Roscommon (€147,312).

Despite years of rapid growth, property prices in both Dublin and outside of Dublin are still fractionally lower than their peak in 2007. However this is likely to be surpassed before the end of the year. 

Looking forward

Looking forward, price growth should eventually cool down as more supply comes on stream. The ECB is also set to start raising interest rates later this month, which should also dampen prices. However this may not help prospective buyers much as it'll also increase homeowners' mortgage repayments and potentially reduce the amount people can borrow.