Cavan: House values continue to rebound from post-crash slump

Drawn to its understated charms, relocators are also moving there due to its excellent connectivity to Dublin and other regions.

Cavan was one of the hardest hit counties in the aftermath of the property crash. But residential property values in the county are now showing strong continued recovery, with prices up by an average of 8pc on 2020.

Families who have been living in Dublin are prepared to spend €400,000 to €500,000 for the sort of large family home you can get in Cavan for that kind of money.

Meanwhile, the county’s local authority is one of Ireland’s better performers in the provision of social housing with 362 new builds under construction and 90 vacant homes now under refurbishment.

Three-bed semis in town are currently averaging €165,000 mark, while four beds are currently €180,000 on average.

Another trend is that houses are now beginning to make close to the asking prices in a market that had become very used to sales being agreed at well below the asking price.

There are a number of new four-bed homes currently on offer in Bailieborough and Belturbet, but the overall shortage of new development coming to market has also made things difficult for first-time buyers.

Local auctioneer Declan Woods says the market badly needs new schemes to satisfy the demand from the property ladder’s first-rung aspirants.

He says towns such as Virginia are ripe for new development, in particular homes with A-energy ratings as buyers look to do their bit for climate change.

Galetech Sustainable Living applied for permission to build 26 three-bed homes at Aghnaskerry in Cavan town, overlooking Killymooney Lough. However there has been controversy about the zoning.

Meanwhile, immigrant workers are big players in the market as Cavan General Hospital and many nursing homes in the county are staffed by large numbers of Asian medical professionals.

Many of these would have formerly have lived in Dublin before moving to Cavan in pursuit of better value.

The Lithuanian, Latvian and Polish communities are strong in the market for apartments where two-beds are averaging €120,000.

Holiday homes are making a comeback and their values have risen steadily during the pandemic.

In one extreme example, a lakeside cabin with a guide price of €260,000 realised €340,000 at auction early last year.

Woods estimates overall values will grow by an average of 10pc this year.