House prices surge 20% in the west of Ireland

Residential property prices continued to increase across most parts of Ireland in the year to the end of February, led by gains in the west of the country, according to the latest figures.

Official data from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) shows that house prices in parts of the west of Ireland, including Galway, Roscommon and Mayo, rose by close to 20% year-on-year, which was more than double the average rise of 8% witnessed in Dublin during the same period.

Experts believe that the sharp rise in property values in the west of the country was fuelled mainly by high demand from buyers looking to take advantage of good value for money property deals, with the market recovery in the region lagging behind the capital.

Official figures show that property prices in the west of Ireland remain about 30% below the peak reached pre-credit crunch in 2007.

But with demand for property in the region now outweighing supply, the Institute of Professional Auctioneers & Valuers forecast that home prices will rise in the foreseeable future.

Pat Davitt, chief executive, Institute of Professional Auctioneers & Valuers, said: “There are only a few large operators building residential in Dublin city. This lack of competition is fuelling price growth and also dictating a tendency to build in areas that can command higher prices.”