Just 20% of Cork properties were sold to first-time buyers
Only one in five of residential properties sold in Cork so far this year have been purchased by first-time buyers
Figures published by the Central Statistics Office show that just 710 of 3,643 properties sold in the city and county in the first eight months of 2016 were bought by first-time buyers representing 19. 5% of the total.
They also reveal that more than a quarter of all properties sold in Cork up to August were bought by private investors with a further 11.5% sold to institutional investors, housing agencies and local authorities.
The figures demonstrate the increasing competition faced by people attempting to get on the first step of the property ladder.
In 2010, 39% of all properties sold in Cork were bought by first-time buyers.
However, their share of the market has fallen continuously ever since, decreasing to 20% last year.
First-time buyers accounted for just over a quarter of the 315 new homes that came on the market in Cork in 2016.
The figures highlight the resurgence in activity in the property market in Cork as in most other parts of the country as the 3,643 properties sold between January and August exceeded the entire annual sales each year between 2010 and 2013.
The value of sales in the county so far in 2016 is €635.3m with the average house price at €174, 389 — its highest level since the economic crash and up from €168,637 last year.
Nationally, the CSO figures show that property prices rose at their fastest rate in over 12 months in August, despite stricter lending rules introduced by the Central Bank to keep inflation under control.
On average property prices rose by 7.2% annually.
They also revealed that house prices outside Dublin have been rising at more than double the rate of those in the capital.
The average price of homes sold in the year to August 2016 is €232,398.
Average prices across Ireland ranged from €381,128 in Dublin followed by €314,234 in Co Wicklow to €81,414 in Co Longford.
August recorded the highest number of property sales so far this year with 3,277 units sold for a combined value of €842.9m.
The Government last week was forced to alter a first-time buyers grant announced in the Budget after an intervention by the Central Bank.
Under the scheme, a first-time buyer can get a tax rebate worth 5% of a new home up to a maximum state payment of €20,000.
Housing Minister Simon Coveney said he still wants first-time buyers spending up to €600,000 to qualify for the grant. However, Fianna Fáil wants that capped at €400,000.
