Cash buyers accounted for half of all residential property purchases in Ireland in the first half of the year.
According to a report in The Sunday Business Post at the weekend, just half of the near €2 billion worth of property that was sold nationwide between January and June came from mortgages issued by banks.
An analysis of figures in the new Property Price Register showed that €1.942 billion worth of property was sold in the first half of the year, double the amount drawn down in home loans for the same period.
The most recent Irish Banking Federation figures, by comparison, showed €974 million worth of mortgages were issued by banks up to the end of the second quarter. This indicates that the balance was paid in cash.
The total spend on residential property in the first half of the year increased from €1.664 billion in the same period in 2011.
A total of 10,266 properties were sold in the period compared to 7,457 in the same period last year. That represents a 37.6% increase in the number of transactions.
While sales increased, the average property price declined from €223,095 to €189,188, according to the Business Post.
