New figures show that house prices continued to fall steadily last month, and have now dropped by more than 6% in the first five months of the year.
The house price index, compiled by Permanent TSB and the ESRI, fell by 1.3% in May. This was not as sharp as April's drop of 1.9%, which had been the biggest monthly drop since the index started in 1996.
Prices in May fell at an annual rate of 10.9%, while the average price of a house was €245,295, down more than €16,000 since the start of the year.
Permanent TSB's Niall O'Grady said continuing low demand and a significant backlog of properties for sale were still driving prices down. He added that any improvements in affordability were likely to be ignored until economic confidence returned.
The index shows that house prices in Dublin fell by 2.2% in May, while the fall was only 0.4% for houses outside Dublin. House prices in the commuter countries around the capital fell by 0.6% in the month. New house prices were down 2.1% in the month, while prices of existing houses fell by 0.1%.
House prices for first-time buyers dropped 1.4%, following a 4% slump in April, while prices for second-time buyers were down 0.5%.
The survey is based on the agreed sale price and is calculated using figures from mortgage drawdowns. The index is a three-month moving average. The compilers point out that there may be a time lag between the time the sale price is agreed and when the mortgage is drawn down.
