Prices of houses and apartments across the country suffered their biggest monthly fall in two and a half years last month, according to the Central Statistics Office.
The CSO said residential property prices fell by 2.2% during October. This meant prices were 15.1% lower than in October last year. Falls in property prices slowed late last year, but have accelerated as this year has gone on.
House prices overall are 45% lower than their peak level in 2007, according to the CSO. Dublin prices have fallen furthest, with house prices 51% below peak levels and apartments down 60%.
Dublin house prices fell 3.2% last month, giving an annual drop of 17.5%. Dublin apartment prices dropped 21.2% over 12 months, following a 2.3% dip during October.
Prices in the rest of the country fell by 2.1% in October, giving an annual drop of 13.8%.
Property prices "back at 2000 levels"
Goodbody economist Dermot O'Leary said residential property prices in Ireland were now officially back to mid-2000 levels.
"It is likely that increased price discovery over recent months due to high-profile property auctions has increased transparency in the property market, leading to lower prices," he said.
Bloxham economist Alan McQuaid said that after these latest figures, he thought the average fall this year would be around 14% followed by another 9% decline next year. "It will be 2013 before prices start to pick up," he added.
