First-Time Buyer Mortgages Hit 2007 High in Q1, Totaling Over €3 Billion

First-time buyers drew down more mortgages in Q1 this year than in any corresponding quarter since 2007, according to Banking and Payments Federation Ireland (BPFI) data. A total of 9,437 new mortgages, valued at over €3 billion, were drawn down by borrowers in Q1, marking a 2.4% increase in volume and 7.8% in value year-on-year.

First-time buyers represented the largest segment, with 5,626 drawdowns valued at over €1.8 billion, accounting for 59.6% of volume and 60.6% of value. BPFI chief executive Brian Hayes noted these were the strongest first-quarter first-time buyer volumes since 2007 and highest values since 2006. Re-mortgage and switching volumes increased by 3.6% and 16.7% respectively year-on-year, while mover purchase activity declined 9.4% to 1,768, the lowest Q1 level since 2014.

New properties, including self-builds, comprised 35.8% of all drawdowns, up from 31.7% the previous year, reaching their highest Q1 level since 2008. This was largely driven by first-time buyer mortgages on new properties, which rose 18.3% in volume to 2,252 and 25.3% in value to over €792 million, the highest Q1 value since 2007. Conversely, the second-hand homes segment saw its share contract, with volumes down 4.2% and values down 0.9% year-on-year, marking the fifth consecutive quarter of volume decline.

In March, 4,482 mortgages were approved, with 2,805 for first-time buyers (62.6% of volume). Approvals rose 22.8% month-on-month but fell 0.9% year-on-year. The value of approvals in March was €1.4 billion, with first-time buyers accounting for €935 million. Annually, the value of mortgage approvals reached a new high of almost €17 billion in the 12 months ending March, with first-time buyer approvals hitting €10.6 billion, the highest since 2011.