By Daniel McConnell Chief Reporter
Sunday May 10 2009

Almost €200m was wiped off the value of houses in price reductions in less than a month by sellers desperate to offload their properties, the Sunday Independent can reveal.

In what is being described as the introduction of "a major dose of reality" to the housing market, price drops of over 50 per cent have been reported on many houses, particularly in the Dublin area.

Price reductions before last month had slowed, with sellers refusing to budge below their expectations, but the lack of activity has forced them to massively reduce their original prices in order to sell, industry figures have said.

Peter Wyse, a leading estate agent in Dublin, said yesterday that sellers are finally becoming realistic about what their properties can fetch.

Mr Wyse also said that he has sold two houses, one in Rathgar and one in Dun Laoghaire, both of which originally went on the market for over €1.1m, for €500,000 and €600,000, in recent weeks.

Last week, Sherry Fitzgerald estate agents revealed that out of 192 sales in the Dublin area in the first four months of the year, prices had dropped by up to 52 per cent from their original asking price.

Original Article