Figures from home guarantee scheme Homebond show that the number of new homes registered in January fell by almost 86% compared with the same month last year.
In another illustration of how depressed the property market is, Homebond said just 65 new homes were registered last month, compared with 456 in May 2010, a drop of 85.7%.
The Homebond figures are seen as an indicator of future housing activity. Homebond is the bigger of two companies which provide registration figures, the other being Premier.
Only eight new homes were registered in Dublin in May, with 13 in Cork. There were no new homes at all registered in 11 counties.
Last year, the number of new homes registered last year fell by almost 50% compared with 2009.
