Midlands Seller Market Report – Q3 2026
Midlands Real Estate · Market insight for home sellers · Oct 13, 2026
At a glance
Price growth has cooled to its slowest pace in three years, but homes for sale outside Dublin are still scarce, so the Midlands remains a supportive market for sellers.
| Measure | Latest figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Annual asking-price inflation, national | 3.9%, the softest pace in three years | MyHome Q3 2026 |
| Median asking price, national | €390,000 | MyHome Q3 2026 |
| Homes listed for sale on MyHome | 14,631, up 12.5% on a year ago | MyHome Q3 2026 |
| List price growth, Leinster outside Dublin (year to June) | 4.8%, down from 7.6% | Daft.ie Q2 2026 |
| First-time buyers’ share of mortgages drawn down (H1 2026) | Three in four | MyHome Q3 2026 |
What this means for sellers
Prices are still rising, but buyers are more price-aware than a year ago, so pricing and presentation now decide how quickly a home sells.
- Growth is slower, not gone. Asking prices are up 3.9% nationally and 4.8% outside Dublin. The official price index is forecast to end 2026 about 4% higher.
- Buyers are active. First-time buyers took three in four mortgages drawn down in the first half of 2026. Mortgage approvals June to August were up 9% on the year.
- Competition is building. Listings are up 12.5% nationally, so a well-priced, well-presented home stands out.
- Supply is still tight in Leinster and the regions. Leinster outside Dublin has about 47% fewer homes for sale than its 2015-2019 average.
- Energy rating adds value. Each step up the BER scale lifted sale prices by about 2.7% on average in a study of close to 50,000 transactions.
Price growth is cooling
Annual asking-price inflation slowed to 3.9% in Q3 2026, down from 5.0% in Q2, after asking prices fell 1.4% on the quarter, as they often do once the busy summer season ends.
| Median asking price | €000 | Change on quarter | Change on year |
|---|---|---|---|
| National | 390 | -1.4% | +3.9% |
| Dublin | 480 | -2.3% | +2.1% |
| Outside Dublin | 349 | -1.0% | +4.8% |
Daft.ie shows the same trend. List prices rose 3.8% in the year to June, down from 6.8% a year earlier, and transaction prices rose 3.2%, the slowest pace since 2023.
Summer still had some heat: in July and August homes sold 8% above their original asking price at the median. MyHome expects those gains to fade over winter, leaving the CSO’s official price index about 4% higher across 2026.
A two-speed market
Price growth has slowed sharply in the cities, while the regions outside them keep rising faster than the national average.
Leinster outside Dublin slowed from 7.6% to 4.8%, still above the national 3.8%. Daft.ie’s early transaction figures put Leinster prices 7.7% higher on a year earlier, though recent months are provisional.
Midlands county prices
All four Midlands counties are growing faster than the 3.9% national rate, led by Laois and Offaly.
Roscommon, at 3.5%, is the only county shown that sits below the national rate.
What different homes are listing at
Westmeath has the highest average list price in six of the seven home types shown; Longford is the most affordable entry point.
| Home type | Westmeath | Laois | Offaly | Longford |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3-bed semi-detached | €330k, +10.4% | €303k, +3.4% | €286k, +3.9% | €220k, +9.5% |
| 4-bed semi-detached | €389k, +9.2% | €361k, +1.9% | ||
| 3-bed detached | €335k, +4.7% | €332k, +5.2% | €297k, -0.1% | €250k, +8.3% |
| 4-bed detached | €471k, +8.1% | €438k, +2.5% | €420k, +1.6% | €329k, +11.3% |
| 5-bed detached | €564k, +10.4% | €530k, -6.9% | €556k, +15.6% | |
| 3-bed terraced | €329k, +15.8% | €311k, +14.9% | €255k, +7.8% | |
| 2-bed apartment | €218k, -3.9% | €228k, +22.9% | €151k, +8.6% |
Average list prices in Q2 2026, with the change on a year earlier. Blank cells mean too few listings to estimate a price. Source: Daft.ie Sales Report 2026 Q2.
Competition: more homes are coming to market, but choice is still limited
Listings are rising, yet buyers outside Dublin still have far fewer homes to choose from than before covid, which supports sellers.
MyHome counted 14,631 homes for sale in September, the highest since 2022. Outside Dublin there were about 10,300, up 12.5% on the year, against about 4,300 in Dublin, up 7.6%.
Who is buying
First-time buyers now drive the market, taking three in four mortgages, while existing homeowners are holding back.
Demand is still growing. Mortgage approvals from June to August were up 9% on the year, to 13,411. The average approval in August was €346,000, up only 2.8%, which suggests buyers’ borrowing is levelling off as the 4x income lending limit starts to bind.
Affordability is the ceiling on prices. The median price of €412,000 is 7.7 times average pay of €55,000, although the typical first-time buyer applies with a joint income of €95,000. MyHome expects price growth to settle close to pay growth of 3-4%.
Movers are the missing piece: many are reluctant to sell for fear of not finding another home, and existing home sales look set to fall for a fourth year in 2026.
Selling prices are holding up outside Dublin
Sale prices are rising faster than asking prices in Leinster outside Dublin, Munster and the four other cities, a sign buyers are still paying up.
Dublin is the exception, with early figures showing sale prices 2.3% lower than a year ago. MyHome data show homes sold 8% above original asking price at the median in July and August, though Daft.ie notes the gap between asking and sale prices has narrowed over the past year.
Energy rating adds value
A better BER rating lifts sale prices by about 2.7% for each step up the scale, based on close to 50,000 sales in 2023 and 2024.
The uplift is 1.8% per step in Dublin, 2.7% in urban areas outside Dublin and 4.7% in rural areas. BER had a stronger effect on final sale prices (2.7%) than on listed prices (2.3%), which suggests vendors do not always price in the value of an upgrade.
Outlook: what to expect into 2027
MyHome expects price growth to stay moderate, close to wage growth, while more homes reach the market.
- Prices: the official price index is forecast to rise about 4% through 2026, and price growth should settle near pay growth of 3-4%.
- New supply: completions are forecast at 39,600 in 2026 and 42,000 in 2027. The 38,000 homes built in the year to June exceeded population growth for the first time.
- Resale market: existing home sales look set to fall for a fourth year in 2026, but rising listings point to a likely rebound next year.
- Policy: Budget 2027 raised the Help-to-Buy scheme by €5,000, which supports first-time buyers.
For sellers, that points to three things: price to what buyers can borrow, know your BER rating before you list, and present the home well, since buyers have more choice than a year ago.
Thinking of selling?
Speak to Midlands Real Estate about a valuation based on recent sales and current demand in your area.
- Phone: 057 9300029
- Email: kevin@mre.ie
- Web: www.mre.ie
Sources and notes
- MyHome Property Report Q3 2026, in association with Bank of Ireland (myhome.ie/reports). Asking prices are medians of properties advertised on MyHome.
- Daft.ie Sales Report 2026 Q2, by Prof. Ronan Lyons, Trinity College Dublin. All data © Daft Media Limited. Transaction prices are matched to the Property Price Register, are registered with a lag and are provisional for recent months.
- Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI), Building Energy Ratings and Property Sales Prices in Ireland, August 2026, as reported by MyHome.
This report is general market information, not a valuation or financial advice. The value of an individual home depends on its location, condition and type.