House prices in Galway city and county are continuing to drop with a fall of almost five per cent in the first three months of this year, according to the latest findings by property website Daft.ie
In Connacht, the asking prices fell by an average of 1.4 per cent in the first three months of 2011, smaller than the falls seen between September and December last year. The average asking price in Galway city during the first quarter of this year was €230,000, a fall of €167,000 from peak levels in 2007. For the rest of the county asking prices have been on average €180,000, down €128,000 from the peak.
Nationally asking prices for residential property fell by an average of 3.1 per cent during the first three months of 2011. The national asking price now stands at €210,000 a fall of 43 per cent from the peak, and the average time to sell a property is now nine months.
Economist with Daft.ie Ronan Lyons explained that the ongoing mismatch between supply and demand continues to push prices further down. He said: “Prospective buyers find it difficult to get the finance, while owner occupiers are often restricted by negative equity. As a result, the market is moving very slowly. Of the 3,000 properties posted for sale 15 months ago at the start of 2010, one in three is still for sale, although in Dublin the figure is closer to just one in six.”
