The MyHome.ie national property price barometer has shown that price drops in Galway's property market are significantly greater than the national average decline of 0.2 per cent.

Asking prices for residential property have dropped by 0.2 per cent nationally over the last quarter, with the total decrease for last year now at 1.7 per cent.

The price of a three-bedroom semi-detached home in Galway has dropped by three per cent, with a 2.3 per cent drop in four bed detached homes in the last quarter of 2007.

However, the biggest drops were recorded in Dublin, with a decrease of 1.4 per cent in the last quarter and a total of 3.4 per cent in the year.

The report also tracks the trends in asking prices against trends in actual sale prices and shows that over the last 12 months the fall in sale prices has consistently exceeded the more modest drop in asking prices.

Commenting on the results, Jim Miley, Chief Executive of MyHome.ie said: "This latest Barometer Report confirms that we are now firmly in a buyers market. However, the further drops in Asking Prices over the final quarter of 2007 indicate that sellers are beginning to face up to the reality of the market and accept lower prices. Estate agents are reporting some increase in transaction activity but it will take more time to clear the overhang of stock in the market."

NCB Senior Economist, Eunan King who provided the expert commentary for the Report said, "Confidence remains weak in the housing market for the moment, but the underlying need for accommodation continues to be firm, as evidenced by rising rents. The inflow of immigrants was over 100,000 in each of the two years to April 2007 and would not appear to have slackened much since then. The affordability of houses is improving as house prices fall, incomes increase and interest rates peak. The prospect of interest rate cuts later in the year is now firmer. Employment is still growing and, while unemployment has risen somewhat, it is still low and is in any case is not as good a barometer of demand as employment. Thus there is no fundamental crisis in the sector. If housing output is cut sharply, as anecdotal evidence would have it, any supply overhang will be absorbed fairly quickly and output growth should resume."

The report includes a four-page, county-by-county guide providing details of price trends for the most popular property types on sale. Most counties show a drop in prices for three bed semis in the last quarter with the sharpest fall of 7.7 per cent in Roscommon. Prices for four bed detached houses dropped to a lesser extent and in some counties modest rises in asking prices were recorded.

The report also puts the spotlight on a number of areas and analyses key price movements and the changes in the 'price premium' trends in one area over another over the last three years.

The MyHome.ie database contains more than two-thirds of all residential properties for sale in Ireland. The Report was based on an independent analysis of the data and commentary by NCB.

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