Never doubt the power of the Irish mammy. She's still having her say. Most youngsters fleeing the family home are not merely turning to the latest professional on the block, namely the broker, but more importantly, to their parents. Raising capital for the traditional three-bed, first-time home is way beyond the reach of the average singleton or even couples. The best they can do is look to two-bed duplex homes or apartments, often in west Dublin, properties they may wish to sell at the same time as all the other buyers also want to sell . And the parents are doing their bit. Ken MacDonald, of Hooke and MacDonald is a major player in the new homes' market. His company has come up with figures - in conjunction with the Irish Mortgage Corporation and based on a Department of Environment survey - which say it all. Last year 25 per cent of first-time buyers did so on the basis of having a parental guarantee.

In other words, many parents even put their own homes on the line to have the mortgage come through. And nearly 50 per cent of first-time buyers were being approved on the basis of parental assistance by means of a lump-sum gift. "This can vary from anything from £1,000 up to £20,000," says MacDonald, "but it's becoming a big factor." And he says it is inevitable since it is getting harder for first-time buyers to raise the money in any other way. "There is a huge resistance to being stuck on the rental ladder," he says. "Rents in west Dublin are now about £700 (€888) for a two-bed home and £1,000 (€1,270) for a three-bed. It's impossible for people to save for a deposit." Given the new higher densities introduced by the Government, builders are now constructing more units per acre, and that means two-bed units, which in west Dublin, Swords and Santry are costing anything from £130,000 (€165,066) to £150,000 (€190,460). But the cheapest three-beds are on the market from £160,000 (€293,158) to £180,000 (€228,553).

The higher density levels were designed to increase the supply of housing by providing smaller units, but the two-beds are still considered very much a starter home. And demand for the three-bed semi is high because parents like what they see. They figure it's a house for the future. The offspring can pay for the mortgage with the help of lodgers and young couples can plan a family without having to budget for a move to another property. And of course, there's plenty of room in the three-bed for the in-laws, too. "Certainly, the parents are more likely to let their children paddle their own canoes for the two-beds," says Gerry Leahy, of Leahy Associates. "They will help out with the three-beds which they see as a long term move. There's a real trend in this." The three-beds have become scarcer, he says, but demand is still there. However, the reality is that it is easier to buy the two-bed. "The number of sales aren't affected but prices are not increasing as fast as they were last year," says Leahy.

The softening in the IT sector hasn't affected property sales in west Dublin, he adds. "The main people affected so far have been at the higher, not at the lower levels. In ways, it has been an even greater incentive to younger people to get a first home." Brendan Byrne, of Ross MacParland, confirms the demand for the three-beds as well as for two-beds. "The biggest change I've seen is in the growth of the mortgage broker," he says. "There are more people going to brokers. If I had a son or daughter looking for a loan, that's where I would send them." The mortgage broker negotiates with different lending agencies and only earns a fee if a mortgage is bought, hence the pressure is on to come up with the best deal as quickly as possible. Ken MacDonald doesn't think many people are taking up a series of short-term loans from different agencies at the same time. "It's too risky," he says. But he would urge more people to avail of such schemes as the Shared Ownership Scheme, and the Affordable Housing Scheme, run by the local authorities. "It's a way of getting onto the bottom rung of the ladder," he adds. "Not enough people are even aware of the existence of these schemes."

Of course, it's not so tight at the upper end of the market. Declan Cassidy of Gunne Residential, in Fairview, is selling top-of-the range detached homes in Abington in Malahide. They range in price from £1.7 million (€2.16m) to £2.2 million (€2.79m) and at that level it really is the banks' problem. "A lot of people buying have business and personal affairs inter-linked. They are often self-employed and can go into the bank and raise personal finance quite easily because the bank wants to hang on to the business custom as well," says Cassidy. "Getting bridging finance certainly isn't a problem at that level." But he confirms the relative slow-down in the middle-income groups. Couples trading up from their first house are finding their finances can become unstuck even after finding the new home they want to buy. "The banks are cautious with them," says Cassidy. "People looking to buy a home worth £220,000 (€279,342) are having to have an unconditional contract signed for the sale of their own home before they will get the finance necessary to go to auction to buy the new house." So, the message is clear - if you want a home, you talk to the broker and then to the mammy.