THE cost of getting home extensions and repairs done has plummeted by over 50pc in the last two years.

Prices have dropped back dramatically to just half of what they were in the heyday of the Celtic Tiger, a new survey of tradesmen's quotes has found.

Home improvement prices have fallen by 59pc on average, as consumers cut back on what they're willing to spend and builders tout desperately for business.

The index compiled by onlinetradesmen.com -- a website which gives householders the chance to seek competing quotes for work -- shows that the cost of getting an extension built is down from €171 per square foot in 2007 to just €82.50 per square foot now, a drop of 52pc.

There are regional differences -- with Dubliners paying more for extensions at around €100 per square foot -- but even people living in the capital are benefiting from dramatic falls in price since 2007.

The Consumers Association of Ireland (CAI) said the price falls showed people were "paying way too much in the past".

Qualifications

But Michael Kilcoyne of the CAI also said: "More than ever people need to check out the qualifications and previous work done by people. There are far too many labourers suddenly calling themselves plumbers, so make sure you ask for references and talk to previous customers."

The Construction Industry Federation said that the fall in prices reflected the fact that smaller building firms were desperate to get any business to keep cash flowing -- even if it was below the cost of actually doing the job.

For bigger building projects there was not the same scope for huge price falls because they were obliged to use registered employer agreements governing rates of pay and requiring mandatory pension schemes.

"It is hugely important to use compliant contractors to do your work, for health and safety and insurance reasons and to avoid the situation where the black market wipes out credible operators,"said CIF Director Martin Whelan.

Getting your house painted is now likely to cost €250 per day, down from €375 per day in 2007. The cost of getting a plumber has also fallen, from €109 for a call-out and the first hour's labour in 2007, to €59 now, while electrician repairs are down from €65 per hour to €40 per hour since 2007.

Householders are scaling back massively on the work carried out, with the average extension down from around 500 square foot to 415 square foot, said online tradesmen website managing director Ted Laverty.

This reduced scale also means that they are usually under the size threshold for planning permission and can avoid associated costs such as planning and architects' fees, he said.

The number of people using the website service to find a qualified tradesman was up 64pc year on year, but customers were tending to go for smaller jobs such as reflooring, landscaping or bathroom refurbishments, with the average price paid per home down from €14,000 to €5,600.

This reflected reduced costs, greater competition from tradesmen for work, and the difficulty of getting bank loans for larger projects, said Mr Laverty.

"Prices were too high, as in every facet of society they had become outrageous, but our index shows they have corrected themselves, or even over-corrected themselves as margins are now very low indeed," he said.

THE IRISH INDEPENDENT, Aidan Sheehan