The Central Bank of Ireland confirmed that new mortgage contracts were down 35% year-on-year in July. The number of new mortgage contracts in July stood at €556 million, according to the Central Bank.
However, reports indicate that there is a 13% increase in contracts compared to the previous month, which is the second consecutive monthly increase since March.
In July, Ireland’s mortgage rate was 2.82%. This indicates that Ireland has the highest mortgage rate across the Euro region. At the same time, the euro averaged 1.35% in the same month.
Within the three months from July, fixed-rate mortgages will cover 76% of new contracts. This compares with 84% of new deals in the Europe over the same period.
New fixed-rate mortgages agreed to €445 million, down 31% from July last year. New variable rate mortgage contracts are down 46% year-on-year to €111 million.
The average interest rate is 7.08% and the equivalent Euro area rate is 5.22%.
Consumer loan agreements were €221 million in July, up 59% from the previous month. Statistics show that lending is declining year on year.