House asking prices in Ireland have surged by 12.3% over the past year, reaching an average of €357,851, the highest annual increase since the Central Bank introduced stricter mortgage lending rules in 2015, according to the latest Daft.ie House Price Report.
The report, published on Monday, reveals that national asking prices rose by 3% between April and late June alone, bringing the total increase since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic to 40%. The continued upward trend is being driven by persistent supply shortages across the housing market.
“The fastest increase in house prices since the implementation of mortgage market rules highlights the scale of Ireland’s worsening housing shortage,” said Ronan Lyons, economist at Trinity College Dublin and author of the report.
In the capital, prices are now averaging €467,913, reflecting a 12.3% year-on-year rise — in line with the national figure. Other cities have seen similarly steep increases, with Galway up 12.5% to €426,348 and Limerick up 12.8% to €311,086.
Waterford recorded the sharpest increase among the cities, with prices jumping 15.2% year-on-year to €276,420. Cork saw a more moderate rise of 8.6%, pushing average prices there to €369,938.
The report attributes much of the inflation to a shortage of second-hand homes. Just 12,100 homes were available for sale across the country in early June — a figure largely unchanged from last year and less than half the pre-pandemic average of nearly 25,000.
Lyons warned that the limited supply of homes for sale, particularly in the second-hand market, is being compounded by higher interest rates, which have discouraged existing homeowners from moving.
“As interest rates begin to fall and more mortgage-holders come off their fixed terms, we may see improved second-hand supply. There are already tentative signs of this in Dublin,” he added.
However, he cautioned that second-hand sales alone cannot address the underlying issue.
“Ultimately, policymakers must confront their failure to provide a framework that allows for enough new homes to be built each year. Without that, Ireland’s housing crisis will continue to deepen.”
The Central Bank’s mortgage rules — which cap loans at 3.5 times a borrower’s income and typically require a deposit of at least 10% — remain in place, acting as a constraint on demand but not enough to counteract rising prices driven by limited availability.
The latest figures come as Ireland continues to grapple with an acute housing crisis that has impacted both homeowners and renters, with policymakers under growing pressure to accelerate construction and reform planning processes.
