The average price of a three-bed semi-detached house in Ireland has risen to €209,944 - that's 10.9% higher than 12 months ago.

As you might expect, Dublin is leading the charge. The average price in the capital is almost twice the national average at  €404,167 according to new figures from the Real Estate Alliance (REA).

They rose by 3.9% between the final quarter of 2016 and the first quarter of this year. This represents a year-on-year increase of 12.8%.

Prices in South County Dublin and North County Dublin both rose by 5.6% - while prices were 3.9% higher in the City Centre.

Kilkenny experienced the sharpest increase - rising by 10.6% in just three months.

It reports that this is a due to a severe lack of supply - the average selling time in the country has fallen to three weeks.

Major cities outside the capital experienced a 2.3% rise during the quarter and a 7.7% annual increase, with the average semi now costing €305,000 in Cork (+3.4%), €132,000 in Galway (+2.1%) and €178,000 in Limerick (+0.6%).

"There has been a recovery in bank lending, which has been reflected in the purchasing end, but the accelerated figures in the Dublin market particularly, show that we are moving into a vendors’ marketplace," REA spokesperson Healy Hynes commented.

"Many private vendors are now emerging from negative equity and can afford to make the move from the starter to the second home ... In the capital, our agents report that the market is incredibly active, with limited supply putting immense upward pressure on prices," he continued.