The Number 13 Has No Luck of the Irish When it Comes to Home Sales

According to Ireland property portal Daft.ie, the number 13 is a very unlucky when it comes to Ireland home addresses, or dates on a calendar when selling.

Friday the 13th may be considered by superstition to be one of the unluckiest days of the year, but new research from Ireland's No.1 Property website Daft.ie, shows that the value of homes at number 13 are typically €4,700 cheaper than the average Irish property (1.8% of €263,000, based on the Q2 2019 Daft.ie House Price Report).

In order to calculate the price difference, Daft.ie carried out a regression analysis on almost 800,000 properties listed for sale in Ireland between January 2006 and June 2019.

The research also shows that since the start of the property price register in January 2010, Friday the 13th has occurred 16 times and on those days there are roughly 14% fewer transactions than regular Fridays, which are normally the busiest days of the week for transactions. The typical Friday sees 275 properties transacted but a Friday that falls on the 13th sees on average just 235 transactions.

Ronan Lyons, Economist at Trinity College Dublin & author of The Daft.ie Report said, "While we think of the housing market as being something determined by big economic forces such as supply and demand, ultimately each property needs a buyer as well as a seller and both those parties are individuals with their own view of the world. Therefore, when thinking about specific individuals, homes and transactions, lots of little factors come into play. The evidence from Ireland's housing market is that, on average, superstition is at work in the housing market! Properties with the number 13 are cheaper than the average property. And when it comes to transactions, people will avoid doing the deal on Friday the 13th!"

Raychel O'Connell, Communications Manager at Daft.ie commented, "Our research shows that house buyers can pocket big savings by purchasing a number 13 house. You can now buy a house that's identical to next door in everything except the door number for almost €5,000 less on average. This is the equivalent of having your legal fees and stamp duty paid for - which is something even the most superstitious people would find difficult to pass up".