Price of the average three-bed semi-detached in Mayo increases

The price of the average second-hand three-bed semi in Mayo rose by four percent to €285,000 in the last three months, according to the latest REA national survey.

Across the county, the average time taken to reach sale agreed was six weeks, the Q1 REA Average House Price Index shows.

“The number of viewers are down on houses requiring work,” said Robert McGreal of REA McGreal Burke.

“However, there is still buoyant demand for well-finished houses in good locations.”

The survey shows that across the county, 35 percent of purchasers were first-time buyers, while a total of 25 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 10pc price increases in comparison to C-rated properties.

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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 one and a half percent in the past three months to €364,747.

This represents an almost eight percent annual rise – slowing gradually from the nine 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 two percent this quarter and nine percent annually to an average of €281,287, while prices in commuter counties rose by one percent to €377,185.