In this article we cover:
- The income needed to buy or build a first home in every county
- Where first-time buyers face the biggest affordability gaps
- The most and least affordable counties
- How mortgage lending limits affect borrowing power
- Supports available to first-time buyers
A single first-time buyer earning the national median salary can’t borrow enough to buy or build their first home in any county in Ireland, according to new research from Chill Insurance.
The analysis puts the national median salary at €44,816, while even in Longford – identified as the most affordable county – a single buyer would need an annual income of €48,375 to secure the mortgage required for a median-priced first-time buyer home.
“With Irish house prices continuing to increase faster than wages, first-time buyers are finding it increasingly difficult to find a property they can afford, not just in Dublin or major urban centres but right across the country,” Economist Austin Hughes said.
“With would-be buyers in Dublin and surrounding counties now needing around twice the typical wage in those areas and approaching that in Cork and Galway, this ‘purchase gap’ is growing and spreading in a worrisome manner.”
The affordability gap becomes considerably wider around Dublin and the east of the country. Three counties now require a six-figure salary from a single first-time buyer: Dublin at €108,000, Wicklow at €101,250 and Kildare at €100,238.
Last year, Dublin was the only county where the calculated income requirement exceeded €100,000.
The figures are based on Central Statistics Office data for median first-time buyer property prices and median incomes, with Chill applying Central Bank mortgage lending limits to calculate the gross income a single buyer would need to borrow 90 per cent of the property value at four times income.
In Dublin, where the median first-time buyer property price is €480,000, the €108,000 income requirement is more than twice the county’s median income of €49,224.
Meath is also approaching the six-figure threshold, with an income of €96,750 required, while Cork stands at €92,092 and Galway at €85,500.
At the other end of the scale, Longford has the lowest calculated requirement at €48,375, followed by Leitrim at €55,125, Donegal at €57,319 and Mayo at €57,375.
“For many first-time buyers, the route onto the ladder increasingly means saving a larger deposit, buying with another person or turning to State supports such as the First Home Scheme or the Local Authority Home Loan,” said Ian O’Reilly, Director of Sales and Operations at Chill Insurance.
Full table below:
| County | Median first-time buyer price | Income required |
| Carlow | €318,000 | €71,550 |
| Cavan | €280,000 | €63,000 |
| Clare | €330,000 | €74,250 |
| Cork | €409,299 | €92,092 |
| Donegal | €254,750 | €57,319 |
| Dublin | €480,000 | €108,000 |
| Galway | €380,000 | €85,500 |
| Kerry | €301,000 | €67,725 |
| Kildare | €445,500 | €100,238 |
| Kilkenny | €348,530 | €78,419 |
| Laois | €366,002 | €82,350 |
| Leitrim | €245,000 | €55,125 |
| Limerick | €350,000 | €78,750 |
| Longford | €215,000 | €48,375 |
| Louth | €390,000 | €87,750 |
| Mayo | €255,000 | €57,375 |
| Meath | €429,999 | €96,750 |
| Monaghan | €286,000 | €64,350 |
| Offaly | €292,000 | €65,700 |
| Roscommon | €280,000 | €63,000 |
| Sligo | €328,750 | €73,969 |
| Tipperary | €298,065 | €67,065 |
| Waterford | €346,013 | €77,853 |
| Westmeath | €340,000 | €76,500 |
| Wexford | €325,000 | €73,125 |
| Wicklow | €450,000 | €101,250 |
Figures show the gross salary a single first-time buyer would need to qualify for a mortgage covering 90 per cent of the county’s median price under the Central Bank’s four-times-income limit.
