Frenzied buyers in NI

With property prices soaring and a shortage of houses on the market, buyers in Northern Ireland are becoming 'frenzied' according to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.

For example in a fashionable area of East Belfast a a four-bedroom, three-reception detached house recently went on the market at £495,000. After a flurry of offers the latest bid stands at £820,000, and it is unlikely to stop there.

All over Northern Ireland, developers are cold-calling homeowners fortunate enough to occupy a generous site in a prime location. In Bangor, a group of residents complained when developers turned up on their doorsteps over the Christmas holidays and asked if they'd be interested in selling their homes - all of which are substantial period properties with large gardens.