Local election candidate calls out government on ‘pipedream’ house prices

House prices in Ireland are continuing to rise and show no signs of stopping under this Government, according to Social Democrats local election candidate Andrew Ring, who is standing for the party in Kanturk/Charleville electoral area.

The Charleville resident said that “The latest Residential Property Price Index from the CSO paints a grim picture for those hoping to buy a home of their own. House prices have risen by 4.4 per cent in the 12 months leading up to December 2023. This has left the median cost of a home at €327,500”.

“It is more expensive now to buy a house than it was at the peak of the property boom in 2007. Property prices are 103.9% above the 2007 peak, according to the CSO,” added Mr Ring.

“The Government’s failure to get to grips with this crisis is turning homeownership into a pipedream for many. There are measures that could and should be taken to increase the supply of genuinely affordable homes to rent and buy.

“The Social Democrats have submitted a number of amendments to the Planning and Development Bill 2023 that would put the delivery of affordable housing at the heart of the planning system. The Government should support these practical, workable and constructive solutions.”

Meanwhile, property website Daft.ie reported this week that in Cork City, prices in the first three months of 2024 were 7% higher than a year previously, compared to a rise of 1% seen a year ago. The average price of a home is now €347,000, 6% below its Celtic Tiger peak. In the rest of Cork, prices in the first three months of 2024 were 11% higher than a year previously, compared to a rise of 3% seen a year ago. The average price of a home is now €301,000, 14% below its Celtic Tiger peak.

Acccording to the Daft.ie report, nationally, housing prices rose by an average of 1.8% in the first three months of 2024, according to the latest Daft.ie House Price Report released today by Ireland’s largest property website, Daft.ie.

The typical listed price nationwide in the first quarter of 2024 was €326,469, 5.8% higher than in the same period a year earlier and 30% higher than at the onset of the covid19 pandemic, reported Daft.ie.