House prices in Ireland have risen by an average of 14.9% for each of the last ten years according to a special edition of the permanent tsb house price index published today.
The special edition of the index, which was compiled in association with the ESRI, was published to mark its tenth year measuring house price changes in Ireland.
According to the new figures, house prices have increased by 270% over the past ten years - compared to a total rise of just 30% in the consumer price index. The average cost of a house in Ireland in 1996 was €75,000. By 2005 the average cost had increased to €280,000.
The index also reveals that a third of the current total number of houses in Ireland, which stands at approximately 547,000 houses, were built in the last ten years. The value of all the houses in Ireland is estimated at €412 billion - a four-fold increase on the figure ten years ago.
