Housing market shows signs of stabilising as price growth eases, says MyHome report
First-time buyers still face tight supply, but slower price inflation and steadier mortgage growth may offer some relief
Ireland’s housing market showed early signs of stabilisation in the final quarter of 2025, with asking prices largely flat and bidding pressure easing, according to the latest MyHome Property Report produced in association with Bank of Ireland.
For first-time buyers, the data points to a market that remains highly competitive but no longer accelerating at the pace seen in 2024 and early 2025. National annual asking price inflation stood at 5.4% in Q4, unchanged from the previous quarter, while prices rose by just 0.1% over the three-month period. This followed stronger growth earlier in the year and suggests momentum is cooling as the market enters 2026.
The median asking price for new listings nationally was €380,000 in Q4 2025. In Dublin, the median stood at €475,000, while outside the capital it was €325,000. Asking prices in Dublin rose modestly by 0.5% during the quarter, but fell by 0.6% across the rest of the country, highlighting more mixed conditions beyond the capital.
While prices appear to be levelling off, competition for available homes remains intense. There were just 12,200 properties listed for sale on MyHome in December, well below pre-pandemic levels of over 20,000. Homes are also selling quickly, with the median time to sale agreed still around five to six weeks, reflecting continued scarcity of supply.
Bidding pressure, however, has eased slightly from its mid-year peak. The median premium paid over asking price fell back to 7.4% in October and November, down from 8.6% in July. Although still high by historical standards, this reduction suggests transaction price growth is likely to slow in 2026 as the earlier “froth” in the market subsides.
Mortgage data also points to a more measured outlook for first-time buyers. The average mortgage approval reached €336,800 in October, an annual increase of 4.8%, but slower than earlier in the year. Average loan-to-income ratios for first-time buyers rose to 3.45 times income in the first half of 2025, up from 3.39 in 2024, indicating that much of the recent expansion in borrowing capacity may now have worked through the system.
On the supply side, residential construction continues to improve, offering some medium- term hope for buyers. Housing completions are projected to reach around 34,000 units in 2025, the highest level since the Celtic Tiger period. However, this remains well below the estimated 50,000 to 60,000 homes per year required to meet demand, meaning supply constraints are likely to persist in the near term.
Rental market trends may also ease pressure on would-be buyers. The Residential Tenancies Board index shows rent inflation for new tenancies slowed to 4.7% year-on-year in Q2 2025, the weakest pace in several years. This reduced rental inflation is no longer feeding into house price growth to the same extent as in recent years.
For househunters in 2026, the MyHome report suggests that while affordability challenges and limited supply remain significant hurdles for first-time buyers, the pace of house price growth is moderating. With asking prices stabilising, bidding intensity easing and mortgage growth slowing, the market appears to be entering a steadier phase.
