Regional average prices

Antrim/Ballymena �71,695 Belfast �88,079 Coleraine/Limavady/North Coast �83,615 Craigavon/Armagh �69,439 East Antrim �70,101 Fermanagh/south Tyrone ��72,424 Lisburn �97,461 Londonderry/Strabane �70,980 Mid and south Down �92,847 Mid Ulster �74,827 North Down �90,325

The survey said the average price of a house for the first quarter of 2001 was �119,012 for a detached house, �100,866 for a detached bungalow, �86,557 for an apartment, �77,005 for a semi-detached house, �68,343 for a semi-detached bungalow and �60,867 for a terraced house.

As with last quarter, the highest rising sectors were semi-detached houses, with an average price rise of 11.7% since last year, semi-detached bungalows, which were up by 10.2% and terraced houses, which were up 9%.

Building boom continues

The lowest rise was again in the price of detached bungalows at 3.4%, while prices for detached houses and apartments remained almost unaltered.

The latest market signals have not impacted on building, however, as apartment blocks continue to spring up around the province and planning applications for new detached and semi-detached housing developments on green-field sites continue to flood in.

I wouldn't base any long-term conclusions on the strength of one survey report. Certainly in the Greater Belfast area there isn't really much for sale under �80,000 for first-time buyers

Tom McClelland

Meanwhile, Tom McClelland of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors said home owners should not worry that the bottom was going to fall out of the housing market.

He added that, on the contrary, first time buyers were still experiencing extreme difficulty in securing houses.

Speaking on BBC Radio Ulster, he said: "No-one should be depressed. All the report reflects is last winter's quarter which ended on March 31. And last winter was the hardest winter for the last 18 years.

"One or two sectors of the market haven't performed as well as last year, but it depends on the amounts of new developments coming on stream and what asking price they were.

"I wouldn't base any long-term conclusions on the strength of one survey report.

"If you look over last eight quarterly reports, sometimes apartments are in front, sometimes its terraced houses, sometimes semis and sometimes detached bungalows.

"But I know from my own personal experience that semis and terraced houses have done very well recently.

"Certainly in the Greater Belfast area there isn't really much for sale under �80,000 for first-time buyers."

The demand for houses prices was also found to vary considerably from region to region around the province, with high demand continuing to push up asking and selling prices in areas like south Belfast and Lisburn, while prices remained lower in other areas including Craigavon in County Armagh.