FT: Dublin's des res feels the heat of recession

Dublin’s affluent Ballsbridge neighbourhood, where the country’s business and professional elite live, has long been home to the the most expensive properties in Ireland. Now, after several years of severe economic decline, the market on the tree-lined avenues dubbed the “embassy belt” – US, British and French missions are all nearby – is arguably the most depressed in any of the advanced economies. Properties that were valued at €10m-€13m at the height of the boom have fallen back to 2002 prices of between €4m-€5m. Average Irish house prices have not fared quite so badly. They have fallen by about 35pc since 2006. [Now try re-reading that as "London's affluent Knightsbridge/Mayfair neighbourhood..." and ask yourself, is London really immune?]