Residential property prices in the Republic of Ireland could rise by as much a 7 per cent by the end of this year, according to one of the country’s leading economists.
Speaking at the launch of the Irish Banking Federation’s (IBF) latest housing market monitor, David Duffy of the Economic and Social Research Institute said: “I think there will be a rise in house prices in the order of 5-7 per cent nationally. Dublin will be 8-10 per cent.
“There are increasing signs of stability and some recovery but we need time to see if this is becoming embedded.”
Earlier this week Ireland’s Central Statistics Office revealed that residential property prices nationally rose by 2.3 per cent in the year to July, and by 8 per cent in Dublin.
According to the IBF, the number of houses and apartments listed for sale was up by 3.8 per cent in the second quarter of 2013, while there has been an 8 per cent rise in transactions, with mortgage approvals almost 10 per cent higher than they were in the first three months of this year.
However, property prices in Ireland are still 49 per cent lower than they were at their 2007 peak, one of the largest declines recorded worldwide since the onset of the global financial crisis.