Limerick is very affordable for first-timers with buyers typically paying between €180,000-€250,000 for new homes.

The Dooradoyle-Raheen area has seen much development in recent years.

Recently a two-bed ground floor apartment sold for €160,000 in this area and a two-bed townhouse for €170,000, according to auctioneer Geoffrey de Courcy. To the north of the city in areas like Farranshore, a three-bed terraced house costs €200,000-€230,000. In the more mature areas of the city, such as the Greystones-Lansdowne area, where houses date from 1950, a three-bed semi costs €210,000-€240,000. Further out of the city in Caherdavin a three-bed semi with garage costs €190,000-€220,000.

First-time buyers are driving the market in Limerick, according to Kersten Mehl from Chesser Auctioneers.

"It's a good market to be in if you are buying but also for those selling because there is such a strong demand," he explained.

An increasingly competitive market means that first-time buyers are getting a good package with electrical goods often thrown in, he added.

Developers are now building smaller products and three-bed semis, three-bed townhouses and two-bed apartments are the most common unit available, he explained. A good-sized three-bed townhouse off the Dublin Road and only a five-minute walk from the city costs in the region of €175,000 to €180,000.

In Rusheen Ard a three-bed semi costs around €215,000. Closer to the sea in the Strandhill road area the same type of house costs €230,000. Prices in outlying villages are much cheaper with a three-bed townhouse costing in the region of €150,000 to €155,000.