Derry City and Strabane district record highest annual growth in property prices

DERRY and Strabane saw a 14 per cent rise in average house prices over the past year - the strongest annual growth - according to new figures released in PropertyPal’s Northern Ireland Housing Market Update for Quarter One.

The Northern Ireland housing market made a strong start to 2025, with approximately 6,200 agreed sales in the first three months of the year and homes reaching 'sale agreed' 16 days faster than the historical average, according to PropertyPal’s latest quarterly report.

The situation with house prices is also robust, with the price of an average home in Northern Ireland increasing by eight per cent on an annual basis when comparing Quarter One 2025 against Quarter One 2024.

Price growth was seen across all council areas on both a yearly and quarterly basis.

In Derry City and Strabane, there were 326 agreed sales in Quarter One, this year.

Average house prices increased between Quarter One 2024 and Quarter One 2025.

They were up 14 per cent with the average house price in Derry City and Strabane being £204,409 in Quarter One 2025.

House prices in the council area increased 3.9 per cent in the first quarter of the year alone.

Commenting on the NI market, Jordan Buchanan, CEO of PropertyPal, said: "The Northern Ireland housing market has made a strong start to 2025, with approximately 6,200 agreed sales in the first three months of the year, broadly in line with the long-term average.

"Encouragingly, homes are selling faster than usual, taking an average of 47 days to secure a buyer and more than two weeks quicker than the historical average.

"This points to continued strength in underlying demand. Supporting this, buyer enquiries per property increased by 15 per cent compared to the previous quarter, signalling strong momentum that is likely to carry into Quarter Two.

“On the pricing front, the market has seen further acceleration. The average property now stands at £226,000, marking an eight per cent annual increase.

"Recent figures from Nationwide also place Northern Ireland at the top of the UK regional growth rankings, underlining the relative strength of the local market."

Mr Buchanan added: “Looking ahead, the outlook remains mixed as economic uncertainty clouds the medium-term picture.

"The Office for Budget Responsibility has recently halved its UK growth forecast, and new tax policies introduced by the Labour government are increasing business costs from this month.

"In addition, rising global trade tensions may further impact economic confidence and market sentiment. However, on the positive side, the labour market remains resilient, with earnings continuing to outpace inflation.

"This, combined with expectations of further interest rate reductions, should help improve affordability and sustain activity in the months ahead.”