ASKING prices for Limerick properties plunged by a further 13 per cent in 2012, according to the latest report from property website myhome.ie. Figures from the myhome.ie report for the last quarter in 2012 show that the average asking price in the city now stands at €155,000, the lowest of the five cities in Ireland. Asking prices in Waterford stood at €160,000, Galway at €185,000, Cork at €195,000 and Dublin at €236,000. On a more positive note, the average asking price for a three-bedroom semi-detached home in Limerick fell by 35 per cent from peak prices, the lowest price drop in the country as most counties saw prices fall by between 45 and 55 per cent.
Geraldine Leddin of GL Auctioneers in Limerick city believes that the property market may see some light at the end of the tunnel in 2013.
She told Limerick Post: “We found that the back end of 2012 was good in terms of sales, people were buying. Maybe this was partly due to the mortgage interest relief being abolished, but there was definitely a buoyancy there that will hopefully continue in 2013. I think sometimes daft.ie and myhome.ie can tend to portray the negative sides when there are some green shoots.”
According to the daft.ie 2012 report, asking prices in both Limerick city and county are down by over 45 per cent from peak Celtic tiger prices, with the average asking price in the county currently at about €154,000.
The Daft report also revealed that 32 per cent of properties in Munster sell within four months.
Overall, myhome.ie revealed that asking prices across the country fell by an average of 14.8 per cent, however the number of transactions increased by over 15 per cent.
The average asking price nationally was €201,000 in 2012, down 51.5 per cent from peak boom prices.
Angela Keegan, managing director of myHome.ie, noted that the moderation in the pace of decline, the increase in the number of transactions during 2012 and the establishment of the Property Price Register were all positives which could be built on.
She added: “The varying ‘sale agreed’ times show that a two tier market is emerging, with times equivalent to three months in Limerick, four months in Dublin and 5.5 months in Galway. However the corresponding ‘sale agreed’ times elsewhere are 10.5 months in Munster, nine months in Ulster and Connacht and seven months in Leinster excluding Dublin.”
Daft.ie reported that on average, four in ten properties across the country sell within four months, while the total stock of properties on the market nationwide is at 47,000, the lowest level since November 2007.
