Property prices in Cavan rise by €5,000 in last quarter of 2024

Asking price for three-bed semi tops €192K

Property prices in Cavan have risen by €5,000 during the quarter, according to the latest MyHome Property Price Report.

The report for Q4 2024, in association with Bank of Ireland, shows that the median asking price for a property in the county is now €225,000. This means prices have risen by €26,000 compared with this time last year.

Asking prices for a three-bed semi-detached house in the county rose by €5,500 over the quarter to €192,500. This means that prices in the segment have risen by €17,500 compared to this time last year.

Meanwhile, the asking price for a four-bed semi-detached house in Cavan was steady over the quarter at €225,000. This price is up by €12,500 compared to this time last year.

There were 217 properties for sale in Cavan at the end of 2024 – a decrease of 10% over the quarter.

The average time for a property to go sale agreed in the county after being placed up for sale now stands at nearly two and a half months.

The author of the report, Conall MacCoille, Chief Economist at Bank of Ireland, said: “The message from this report is that pricing has retained its momentum, and has still not softened even as affordability has become stretched through 2024.

“Demand is still fierce in the market and indeed has strengthened as the year has gone on. This demand has been impacted by rising mortgage approval values, and the first-time buyer market is particularly hot."

Mr MacCoille said that household savings are playing a part in this demand.

He points to new Central Bank data, which shows the average first-time-buyer purchase price nationally was €375,000 in the first half of 2024, up €21,000 (or six per cent) on the year, two-thirds of which was accounted for by mortgage debt.

“First-time-buyers are also taking on more leveraged loans, an average loan to income (LTI) ratio was 3.37x in H1 2024 compared with 3.25x in H1 2023. This is the first time since the Celtic tiger years that the first-time buyer ratio is greater than that of the UK, where the LTI is currently 3.31x. This follows the loosening of the Central Bank mortgage lending rules and reflects greater numbers of first-time buyers just below the 4x threshold," he outlined.

While supply remains low nationally, Mr MacCoille said that Spring will set the scene for the remainder of the year.

“Of course, the acid test will come in the spring, as new listings tend to start to accelerate ahead of next summer,” he said.

“ECB rate cuts this year will also support house prices. However, with limited homes for sale, any initial improvement in affordability may be diluted by homebuyers bidding up house prices.

“Looking ahead to the rest of the year, the outlook is extremely uncertain. For now, we are sticking with our forecast for 42,000 housing completions next year, rising to 45,000 in 2026. We also expect a four per cent rise in Irish house prices. However, if anything this view could be too conservative.”

Joanne Geary, Managing Director of MyHome, said: “Our latest report shows the extent of the demand in the property market, with residential transactions on average being settled at 9% over the asking price and annual asking prices nationwide at their highest level since summer 2022.

“In our last report, we noted that Ireland would need an additional 200,000 homes to match the UK’s housing to population ratio. This time, we drew the comparison on the demand side, with first-time buyers here now taking on more debt relative to income than their UK counterparts for the first time since the Celtic tiger era.

“As we look to the rest of the year, a key metric to watch will be housing completions. Given we do not see any short-term easing in demand, it underscores the importance of increasing our stock levels.”