Average house price in Sligo now over €140,000

THE average house price in Sligo has hit €141,891, according to a consumer survey carried out by Royal London.

People renting in Sligo are paying an average of over €680 each month.

Tadhg Malone of Royal London in Sligo said: “What would have been once considered the traditional sequence of events, get married, buy a house and then have children, in that order, is becoming less common. A period of renting at some point is usually the case for many individuals nowadays, and current house prices in Sligo reaching an average of €141,891 and Central Bank lending restrictions mean that, on average people have to wait well into their thirties before they can afford their first home.

“Average monthly rents in Sligo are currently coming in at around €685. The majority of people believe that you should be in your early twenties when moving out of your family home. This is surprising given that most young people would start college straight after their Leaving Cert, at around 17 or 18 years of age, which could potentially necessitate a move to college digs. Would this view suggest that people are more inclined to think young people should stay at home during college? Perhaps it is due to accommodation availability and affordability. It is more expensive to move out of home to attend college, and many students may select a college course that is within a commuting distance from their home.”