House sales are up by 20% in a year
House sales in Westmeath are up by almost 20% in the first seven months of 2013.
According to the propertypriceregister.ie which provides a record of every house sale in Ireland, there were 239 residential properties purchased in Westmeath between January 1 and July 31 this year, compared to 204 for the same period in 2012; 203 in 2011 and 219 in 2010.
Overall there has been a total spend of €26,958,555.46 on residential properties in the first seven months of this year, compared to €22,670,237.50 in 2012. The average price of house sales also rose slightly from €111,128 in 2012 to €112,797 this year.
Speaking to the Westmeath Examiner, Mullingar estate agent and auctioneer Aidan Davitt said that there had been a “noticeable increase” in both inquiries and sales so far this year and that 2013 “could be a turning point in the property market”.
“People who have been sitting on the fence have decided that prices have hit a bottom. They’re probably taking a long-term look and seeing that purchasing a property is now cheaper than renting in certain circumstances.
“We would have noticed a pick-up since the turn up of the year, in inquires, demand and general sales. There has been quite a bit of inactivity in market in the last five years and rightly so because prices have been falling, now prices seemed to have steadied over 18 months or two years.”
Cash continues to be king, and Mr Davitt is estimating that half of house sales this year have been completed without the new owners obtaining a mortgage.
“It’s a huge change from a few years ago. How long that can continue, I don’t know. We have to get back to a properly functioning market with realistic levels of mortgages. Most would be people who have been saving and now are in a position to buy and may have also been helped out by family members.”
Around 70% of house sales this year have been to first time buyers, Mr Davitt says, 10% are people trading up and 20% investors. There were 94 house sales in Mullingar and 63 in Athlone.