Central Bank Urged To Ensure Mortgages Remain Accessible For First-Time Buyers

Fine Gael is urging the Central Bank to ensure mortgages remain accessible for first time buyers.

Fine Gael TD for Dublin Fingal, Alan Farrell, said first-time buyers are currently being asked for 20% of the value of their mortgage. He said this will prevent young families from getting on the property ladder.

Mr Farrell said: "This is particularly the case in my own constituency of Dublin Fingal where house prices are on the rise and the population is growing. These are people who are subject to increasingly high rents and who therefore find it even more difficult to save.


"In December we learned that mortgage approvals have jumped by 42% as first time buyers rushed to beat the new lending restrictions.

"The Government has made clear its view that moving too soon on mortgage regulations could prove counterproductive. These changes would force prospective buyers to save for longer and they would therefore hit the recovering property market.

"This view has, this week, been supported by the IMF who said that regulations such as those requiring most first-time buyers to have a 20% deposit should only be introduced gradually to support the recovery.

"I know that the Central Bank is considering contributions from the consultation process and that a decision on the issue is due very soon."

(CD/JP)