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Saturday 10 June 2023 Dublin: 17°C

# Mortgages

Last week
28th May 2023 - 10th June 2023
Voices
Analysis: 'A number of variable mortgage holders are now looking vulnerable to rate hikes'
Mark Coan of moneysherpa has some advice for those on variable or short term fixed rates.
Last month
May 2023
Voices
Analysis: Government and the Central Bank can take steps to free the 60,000 mortgage prisoners
Mark Coan of Money Sherpa says more needs to be gone at the regulatory level to help those in insecure mortgage positions.
# Mortgages
McGrath welcomes ruling ordering Pepper Finance to lower mortgage rate for borrower in insolvency
The couple will now pay a rate of 2.5% over the next 25 years.
Voices
Financial advisor: Another ECB hike has been imposed - what should mortgage holders do?
Kieran McAuliffe of Provest looks at today’s ECB increase in interest rates – the seventh in a row – and has some advice for mortgage holders.
This year
2023
# Mortgages
Start of 2023 ushers in mortgage slowdown as drawdowns slide by a third
10,908 new mortgages to the value of €2,868 million were drawn down by borrowers during the first quarter of 2023.
# Banking
Bank of Ireland apologises over error in transferring over around 35,000 KBC mortgages
The mortgage “start date” for a number of mortgages transferring from KBC to BOI was “incorrectly inputted into our systems”.
# Finance committee
Homeowners with €6,000 owed on mortgage given repossession orders, committee told
An Oireachtas committee was told non-banking entities own more than 56% of all domestic mortgages in arrears.
Voices
Financial expert: 'Never give up your tracker' may not be the best advice anymore
Mark Coan of moneysherpa has some advice for those on a tracker mortgage.
# Interest Rate
Ulster Bank increases fixed mortgage rates for second time in four months
The new rates are effective from today and will only apply to certain existing customers.
# Mortgages
Government-backed mortgage offers are set to get bigger from March
Houses valued up to €360,000 in Dun Laoghaire Rathdown, South Dublin, Dublin City, Fingal, Wicklow and Kildare will soon be eligible for the loan.
# Mortgages
Ireland had the highest number of mortgage drawdowns last year since 2008
That’s according to two reports published today by the Banking and Payments Federation Ireland.
# European Central Bank
Bank of Ireland increasing fixed mortgage rates again
The banks’s fixed interest rates will increase by 0.75% for all new mortgage loan drawdowns.
# Housing
Value of mortgages increase by 16.8% in 12 months: banking lobby report
The value of first-time buyers’ mortgages rose 1.4% year-on-year, according to the report.
Last year
2022
# Banks
Tánaiste says there are no current plans to reintroduce mortgage interest relief
Varadkar said there are no plans currently but it’s not something the Government would rule out for the future.
# Interest Rates
Permanent TSB becomes latest bank to raise interest on fixed rate mortgages
The increases will range from 0.05% to 0.9% depending on a range of factors.
# Interest Rates
Bank of Ireland immediately raises interest rates by 0.25% for new fixed rate mortgages
Bank of Ireland says the move is ‘in light of recent interest rate increases by the European Central Bank’.
# Housing
Mortgage change rules to 'boost purchasing power' of renters
The share of renters that can purchase a three-bed semi-detached home in Dublin has fallen since 2015, says the Central Bank.
# Explainer
Mortgage lending limits: What will the new Central Bank announcements mean for you?
An easing of lending restrictions announced today will make a mortgage more accessible for first-time buyers
# Reaction
Housing minister welcomes mortgage rule change but concerns raised about house price increases
Concerns have been raised about increasing borrowing limits when supply remains low.
# mortgage rules
Central Bank rule change: First-time buyers to be able to borrow four times gross income
A review into mortgage lending began last year.
# Banking
Mortgage customers 'frustrated' over wait times to switch lenders amid interest rate hikes
There has been a significant increase in applications over the last 12 months, brokers have said.
One customer started his application in July and still has not received a loan offer from the lender he wants to switch his mortgage to, Michelle Hennessy reports.
Brokers have said the exit of Ulster Bank and KBC from the market has left other lenders struggling to keep up with rising demand.
Voices
Analysis: ECB rates are on the rise, what does this mean for mortgage holders?
Financial expert David Quinn looks at the latest rate hike and the options available to homeowners.
# Mortgage drawdowns
House hunters' spending power drops by 9% as average house price continues to rise
House hunters now have an average of €27,000 less to spend on a home compared to this time last year.
# catriona carey
Central Bank issues warning about unauthorised firm linked to businesswoman Catriona Carey
Carey is listed as the sole director of Careysfort Asset Estates Ltd.
# Mortgages
Mortgage seekers need 'significantly' higher earnings than 10 years ago to secure financing
Median household income of first-time buyers increased from €71,000 to €77,000.
Voices
Opinion: The last thing this housing market needs is a subsidy for developers
The Social Democrats are asking the government to scrap the subsidy for developers – Cian O’Callaghan explains why.
Voices
Opinion: I am one of 'generation rent' - it sounds like a joke but we've stopped laughing
Conor Brummell says young people in Ireland feel they’ve been forgotten by all on the political spectrum.
# Housing
Highest number of mortgages drawn down last year since 2009
Mortgages drawn down in 2021 were worth a total of €10.5 billion, the highest value since 2008.
All time
# Housing
'Don't despair': Housing Minister on his 'radical' plans to solve Ireland's housing issues
State-backed mortgages, Airbnb regulations, and new law needed for Mica scheme – Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien tells The Journal that people shouldn’t despair about housing.
Grant schemes are under consideration for the buying and refurbishment of above shop units as well as vacant properties around the country, the housing minister tells Christina Finn.
New regulations have been signed that will increase first-time buyers income ceiling for the local authority home-loans to €65,000 for single people.
Minister says he's "frustrated with the pace" with the pace of progress in regulating short-term let platforms.
DCC says 'no low hanging fruit' when it comes to vacant houses in the capital
Vacant property tax to be introduced next year in a bid to get empty homes back on the market
# Housing
Number of mortgage approvals continues to grow as almost 4,700 signed off last month
This represents a significant increase on the 1,879 mortgage approvals issued in May 2020, the BPFI said.
# bank of mum and dad
People split on mortgage lending rules but strongly opposed to limits on inheritance from parents
An overwhelming majority do not favour limits on the money people can receive from parents.
# Housing Crisis
Varadkar urges Central Bank to get mortgage lending rules review done 'as soon as possible'
The rules restrict the amount someone can borrow to 3.5 times their income, though there are exemptions.
# Mortgages
Number of mortgage approvals nearly doubled in April compared to same month last year
4,362 mortgages were approved in April this year.
# Housing Market
First-time buyer mortgage drawdowns at highest Q1 level since 2007 - BPFI
Figures show overall mortgage drawdowns in Q1 were at their highest since 2009.
# property ladder
'Relationship status should not define your ability to own a home, but it does'
Single people say trying to buy a home is even more difficult for them than for couples – and that’s saying something.
As difficult as buying a home can be for couples, single people face an even bigger challenge
Some people are 'priced out of 95% of houses in Dublin'
'The rampant greed of the Celtic Tiger cast a long and depressing shadow,' one buyer said
Some houses selling for €120,000 above asking price as virtual viewings become the norm during pandemic
# Mortgages
Significant decline in buy-to-lets as Covid-19 continues to impact housing market
Buy-to-let investors now account for less than 1% of mortgages, compared to 20% in 2006, according to new figures.
# property ladder
Over 3,300 mortgages approved in January, representing 2.8% year-on-year increase
That’s according to figures released by the Banking & Payments Federation Ireland today.
# Banking
'No need to panic': How will the Ulster Bank wind down affect customers?
The bank will be wound down gradually over the next few years.
# The Banks
Government to explore creating a 'third force' in Irish banking if Ulster Bank exits Irish market, says Varadkar
A formal announcement is expected on Ulster Bank’s operations in the Republic of Ireland tomorrow.
# Mortgages
How to make it through the mortgage maze (and de-stress while you're doing it)
Expert tips on putting yourself in pole position for mortgage approval, without a worry overload.