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Housebuilding in Northern Ireland fell to a 60 year low in 2023, new official figures suggest.

The figures show just 5,379 new dwellings were completed during 2023, including 570 social houses.

Meanwhile house prices in Northern Ireland fell slightly in the final quarter of 2023.

Official figures suggest prices were down by 0.9% compared to the third quarter but were 1.4% higher than the same period in 2022.

That took the average price to £177,611 with a range from £158,193 in Armagh, Banbridge, Craigavon to £204,885 in Lisburn and Castlereagh.

Between the first and final quarters of 2023 the average price rose by around 3.5%.

The figures from the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (Nisra) cover almost all sales, including cash deals.

The number of houses being sold in 2023 was at its lowest level in a decade.

The figures suggest there were just over 21,000 sales compared to more than 25,000 in 2022.

It is similar to the number of sales in 2020 when transactions were hit by the pandemic.

There had been an expectation that house prices would begin to fall due to higher interest rates reducing the amount buyers could afford to borrow for mortgages.

However some analysts suggest the muted impact on prices reflects the lack of new housing supply coming onto the market.

Ulster Bank economist Richard Ramsey said that an examination of historical data from the Office of National Statistics suggests housing "completions" were at their lowest since 1959.

He added: "They have only been lower on only two occasions -1958 (£4,940) and 1959 (£4,890).

"However it is worth noting that from 2012-2015 (5.4-5.5k) completions were only marginally above 2023 levels."