Four in ten Laois houses purchased by people outside the county

A recent survey showed four in ten three bed houses were bought by people living outside Laois at the end of 2022. 

In relation to three bed semi detached houses, first time buyers made up 90 percent of the market in Quarter 4 of 2022, with 40 percent of buyers coming from outside the county, the Real Estate Alliance survey revealed. 

It predicted that the cost of an average three-bed house in Laois will rise by five percent, or €12,750 this year.

Three-bed semi-detached homes in the county now cost an average of €255,000, up nine percent on the December 2021 average of €235,000, the Q4 REA Average House Price Index shows.

Prices showed an increase of two percent in the last three months of 2022.

The survey concentrates on the actual sale price of Ireland's typical stock home, the three-bed semi, giving an up-to-date picture of the second-hand property market in towns and cities countrywide.

Across the county, the average house is taking five weeks to sell.

“There are seven new developments under construction in Portlaoise, supply is not an issue, therefore the price of a second-hand, three-bed semi-detached house is holding and increasing very little,” said Seamus Browne of REA Seamus Browne, Portlaoise. 

The actual selling price of a three-bedroomed semi-detached house across the country rose by 0.36 percent over the past three months to €291,667 – representing an annual increase of eight percent.

However, house prices in Dublin have fallen slightly by -0.34 percent in the same period, as mortgage interest rate rises and cost of living increases stem the stream of potential homeowners.

REA agents throughout the country expect prices to rise by just under three percent on average in the next 12 months.

The property market is expected to enjoy a calmer 2023 as mortgage interest rate rises and cost of living increases affect buying ability, according to the nationwide survey.

The majority of REA members feel that the scheduled changes to the Planning Acts will have little effect on market supply in 2023, due to the time lag between legislation and enactment.

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In Dublin city, which is currently experiencing small price drops in certain areas, agents anticipate modest increases of 3.6 percent across the year.

This comes off the back of a 2022 which saw average house prices rise by eight percent nationally and five percent in the capital – with feverish early year increases slowing down in the autumn and winter.

The country’s large towns experienced 10 percent growth last year, with 1.2 percent in the final quarter, and REA agents say that this will continue throughout next year, albeit at a slower pace, with growth of three percent predicted.