Putative home buyers hoping for some mitigation of the Central Bank’s restrictive mortgage lending rules are unlikely to take heart from comments made today.
Speaking at the presentation of the Central Bank's quarterly accounts on Friday, chief economist Gabriel Fagan reiterated the regulator's previously expressed view that the rules are not going anywhere, as they are "permanent" and are there to promote financial stability.
Mr Fagan confirmed that the bank is currently working on a review of the rules, which will be published in November, but noted that this review will not lead to an abolition of the rules.
Moreover, Mr Fagan cautioned against people equating a review with a change in the rules.
“We shouldn’t think of a change taking place,” he said, adding that the rules may not be changed at all, or may in fact be tightened.
Introduced in February 2015, the rules limit the amount home buyers can borrow, typically to 3.5 times their gross income up to a limit of 80 per cent of the purchase price of the property.
Last month the Central Bank issued a robust defence of the home loan caps, saying commercial banks and mortgage brokers are unable on their own to uphold "prudent" credit standards, but the rules continue to come under increasing criticism.
The Institute of Professional Auctioneers & Valuers (IPAV) for example has suggested that the rules are allowing cash buyers, who aren’t subject to the rules, to eclipse first-time buyers who cannot reach the thresholds set by the rules. Figures from the Banking & Payments Federation Ireland (BPFI)showed that the average deposit needed to buy a property in Dublin has more than doubled to € 51,000 as of the end of 2015, as a result of the rules, a level of savings which may be out of the reach of many.
