We are Engineers, Mathematicians, Estate agents, Software developers, Portfolio Managers, Construction workers, Taxi Drivers, Teachers, mortgage brokers, civil servants, self employed, company directors, we even have politicians among our members.

We are concerned citizens.

We are you.

We have watched a real and positive transformation of the Irish economy turn into a boom and from a boom into speculative property bubble. This bubble like all bubbles was destined to burst and in doing so it had the potential to destroy many of the genuine achievements of the late 80's and early 90's.

We have watched our government deliberately inflate the property bubble to the detriment of indigenous and sustainable industries. We have watched one quarter of working males get sucked into a construction industry that could never sustain such levels of employment. We have watched those same workers join dole queues when they were no longer needed.

The public have been duped. They have been convinced that house price increases represent real wealth. They have been told that high property prices do not destroy the competitiveness of a country. They have been sold the lie that debt = wealth.

We have watched many developers using the fear and greed of the public to make billions by convincing us that if you don't buy NOW you will never be able to buy. We have seen terms like "Affordable" redefined to such an extent that people those far in excess of the average industrial wage require state assistance to purchase a below average home.

We have watched banks lend up to 10 times a persons salary and up to (or perhaps in excess of) 100% of the value of a property, with mortgage terms of up to 40 years. We have watched these same banks waive normal lending rules for developers allowing them to roll up interest payments on land that has no chance of recouping it's original cost. The banks still refuse to acknowledge the true market value of the assets backing developer loans.

We have watched the Irish central bank take no action to constrain bank lending or to force banks to acknowledge the true state of their balance sheets. Instead the Central Bank has become a cheer leader for irresponsible behaviour, both assuring the public that the banks are secure while at the same time softening the ground for a bail out of a bank should one be needed.

We want to prevent your tax from being used to bail out developers through the expansion of local authority lending and the affordable housing scheme. It makes no sense to have a scheme which claims to make houses affordable, but which in reality helps keep house prices high.

Developers don't need our help. They can save themselves. During the boom when demand was high, developers locked in enormous profits. Conditions have changed, supply now far far exceeds demand. Despite what they claim developers can sell at a loss, just like any other business that finds itself with too much product and not enough customers.

We want to provide a place where people can get a true picture of what is really happening in the Irish property market and the Irish economy. The national media has finally woken up to what is going on. Those who speak out are not ridiculed quite as much as the have been in the past. Those who continue to claim that the "Fundamentals Are Strong" are no longer given complete freedom to spread their message unchallenged.

However there is still spin. The head of the Construction Industry Federation can still get space in your daily newspaper to try and hook first time buyers. When this happens IrishHomeTruths.com will cut through the spin, point out the flaws in the arguments and point you to the evidence you need to make up your own mind.

And in the future, when the Irish love of property inevitably turns to distrust and then revulsion, IrishHomeTruth.com will cut through the overly negative spin as well.

We hope you'll stick around.