House prices throughout the country rose by 6.8% in the first eight months of the year, down from the 9% growth recorded in the same period last year.
Permanent TSB's house price index shows that prices rose by 1.1% from July, while the annual rate of growth was 11.5%, little changed from the figures for the previous three months.
The average price paid for a house topped the €250,000 mark for the first time.
Permanent TSB's Niall O'Grady reiterated his forecast for growth of 10% for 2004 as a whole, saying an increase in the supply of housing was leading to a moderation in growth.
House prices in Dublin were up 1.6% in August, faster than the 1.1% growth in July, while prices elsewhere rose by 0.9%.
Prices for first-time buyers increased by 1.8% in the month, while prices for second-time buyers were up 0.8%. Prices of new and second-hand houses rose by 1.3% and 1% respectively in August.
New house prices are still showing strong growth, with the annual rate of increase at 12.7%.
Separate figures from estate agent Sherry Fitzgerald show that second-hand house prices grew by 2.4% in the third quarter compared with the second quarter.
Prices in the second quarter had risen by 3.9%. The annual rate of inflation in the second-hand market is now 10.2%, down from 12.3% in the same period last year.
Economist Marian Finnegan is predicting growth of 15% for the year as a whole. The figures also show that first-time buyers bought a third of all second-hand properties traded in the first nine months of the year.
