Ireland's housing market was the worst performing of any European country price-wise in 2007, with prices falling an estimated 7pc, or 10pc in real terms, according to a new report from Britain's Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).

And the number of home registrations in Ireland recorded in February slumped 65pc year-on-year, compounding falls in previous months, according to figures from Homebond.

A total of 1,128 homes were registered by Homebond last month.

The slump in Ireland's housing market is hitting property markets in other European countries as Irish homeowners tighten their belts and rein in overseas spending, according to the RICS report.

The RICS said yesterday that "The cutback is having knock-on effects throughout Europe, because Irish buyers used rising housing wealth back home and attractive tax breaks there (via remortgaging and pensions) to invest substantially in real estate elsewhere, out of all proportion to the relative size of the country," said the RICS in its report.

It added that buy-to-let borrowing in Ireland has helped to prop up the housing market, and that if that source of demand slows substantially "the broader negative impact on the market may be large".

According to Homebond, just one home was registered by the builders' insurer in Co Longford last month, signaling that some home builders may have effectively downed tools. Roughly 1,000 new homes in Longford were registered by the body in 2007.

The slowing housing market has also had a significant impact on the Exchequer's stamp duty receipts, which fell to €372m in February from €669m in the same month last year.

Homebond provides warranties for about 75pc of new homes, with Premier Guarantee providing the remainder.

The figures are widely used as an indicator for the number of new housing starts, but do not include one-off houses, or public housing projects.

The Irish Independent, By John Mulligan, 06 March 2008