House prices fell by 1.1 per cent in April bringing the annual rate of decline to 9.2 per cent, according to the latest Permanent TSB/ESRI house price index.
New house prices are falling even more sharply, with the index reporting the decline in these properties as “almost double the national rate”.
Prices for new homes declined by 2 per cent in April while second-hand houses fell by 0.8 per cent.
Permanent TSB marketing manager Niall O'Grady said while all types of property fell last month, "there is a clear sign of a more pronounced reduction in the price of new houses as sellers move to drive activity in this sluggish sector".
The report comes as Central Bank data, released this morning, shows that mortgage lending grew at its slowest pace in 16 years in April due to rising borrowing costs and falling property prices.
According to the Permanent TSB/ESRI study, the rate of house price decline accelerated to 1.1 per cent last month. This compares to declines of 0.7 per cent in March and 0.8 per cent in February.
The average price paid for a house in the Republic in April was €278,521, compared to €281,643 in December 2007.
In Dublin, the average price paid for a house in April was €386,658 while outside the capital the average price was €240,392, equating to falls of 2.7 per cent and 3.6 per cent respectively.
Equivalent prices for last December were €397,507 for Dublin houses and €249,359 for those outside.
One of the few bright spots on the market was a 0.1 per cent rise in prices for three-bed semi-detached properties in April. Year-on-year prices for homes in this sector have fallen by just one per cent and Mr O'Grady said this sector remained the most resilient.
The average price paid for this type of property last month was €296,289, down from €299,412 recorded last December.
A separate report on the housing Irish property market by Bank of Ireland, released today, indicated that average house prices have fallen back to levels last seen in early 2006
In its quarterly review, the bank said it expects house prices to fall 5 per cent this year and house completions will drop 36 per cent.
