The price of the average three-bed semi in Mayo is expected to rise by four per cent in the next 12 months, according to a survey carried out by Real Estate Alliance.
Prices in the county rose by 6.7 per cent to €160,000 in 2018 – with no change between September and December. The REA Average House Price Survey concentrates on the actual sale price of Ireland's typical stock home, the three-bed semi, giving an up-to-date picture of the second-hand property market in towns and cities countrywide.
According to Kevin Burke from REA McGreal Burke, Castlebar: "The Castlebar and Westport markets remain strong and we expect growth to continue in 2019. The number of 100 per cent cash buyers has diminished and levels of mortgage approved purchasers are not growing.
"Demand is high from first-time buyers and for lower-priced properties, but when a trade-up or asset exceeds €300,000, the sale takes longer. The average semi-detached house nationally now costs €236,287, the Q4 REA Average House Price Survey has found a rise of 0.6 per cent on the Q3 2018 figure of €234,284.
"Overall, the average house price across the country rose by 4.6 per cent in 2018 – a decrease on the 5.4 per cent recorded to September and indicating that the market is continuing to steady after an 11.3 per cent overall rise in 2017.
"Growth in the commuter counties also slowed to 0.38% in the last three months – an annual rise of 4.18 per cent – with the average house now selling for €249,472. This is an annual rise of €10,000 and growth of €2,000 in the last three months.
"The country’s major cities outside Dublin recorded the biggest rise of the quarter at 1.25 per cent, an annual increase of 5.81 per cent, with an average three-bed semi costing €252,500. The biggest urban rise was seen in Galway City, where selling prices rose by 2.7 per cent in the quarter to €282,500 – a yearly increase of 9.7 per cent. The highest annual increases (7.7 per cent ) were once again seen in the rest of the country’s towns which rose in selling price by an average of €10,000 in 2018 and which experienced a 0.85 per cent rise in quarter four to an average of €157,717."
