Asking prices for homes rising at fastest rate in 2 years

Asking prices for homes across the country rose at the fastest rate in almost two years in the 12 months to the end of June, new data shows.

According to the MyHome.ie Property Price Report, advertised prices nationally were up 7.3% with the median asking price reaching €365,000.

The last time the annual inflation rate in prices sought for homes was this high was in the third quarter of 2022, when it reached 7.8%.

In the capital, the annual rate of asking price inflation was 7.2%, while outside Dublin it was 7.6%.

Compared to the previous quarter, asking prices were up 5.1% on a national basis.

In Dublin the quarter-on-quarter increase was 3.3% while outside the capital it was 6.7%.

“The clear message from the Q2 2024 MyHome.ie Property Price Report is that house prices have gained further momentum,” said Conall MacCoille, chief economist at Bank of Ireland and author of the report.

“Asking prices rose by 5% in Q2 2024, up 7.3% on the year, the highest figure since Q3 2022.”

“This represents an acceleration in the pace of annual asking price inflation from 6.5% in Q1 2024.”

“Furthermore, the pick-up in the pace of asking price inflation has been broad based across Dublin (7.2%) and the rest of Ireland (7.6%).”

Mr MacCoille pointed to the 4.7% rise in average earnings in the year to the first quarter, which he said has helped drive mortgage approval values up 4.6% to an average of €313,000.

The relaxation of the Central Bank mortgage lending rules for first-time buyers was also a factor, he said, with the share of first-time buyers with a loan-to-income ratio on their mortgage between 3.5x-4x jumping from 6% in 2022 to 36% last year.

Constrained supply also remains a driver with just 12,500 properties listed for sale on MyHome.ie at the end of June, close to the historic low recorded in the first quarter of this year.

“To some extent this appears to reflect a hangover from 2023, when reports of falling house prices, stretched affordability and ECB rates led many would-be vendors to incorrectly fear demand was soft,” Mr MacCoille said.

“This trend may reverse but will take time.”

However, it should be noted that not all properties are advertised on the platform and homes also change hands without ever being advertised.

The analysis also shows that in May, houses were being sold for 6% over the original asking price, at the median.

This compares to 2023, when the median premium was just 1%.

The average time to sale agreed across the country was just over 11 weeks in the second quarter, which is close to a record low, the report shows.