Property prices show 4% increase in past year

Fermanagh and Londonderry were among areas which saw the greatest pick-up in the market, a House Price Index report revealed.

The Index is one of the main measures of the state of the market and is based on stamp duty information related to residential property sales.

Eight out of 11 district council areas showed a rise in costs over the last quarter.

A 1% increase was recorded during the last three months of last year compared to the previous three.

Compared to the same period in 2016, it rose by 4.3%.

A total of 5,501 properties were sold and that tally is likely to grow as late tax returns are received.

The Index was 18% higher than the first part of 2015.