Mortgage drawdowns hit highest level since 2008
Mortgage drawdowns in the first three months of the year were the highest since the housing market boom, new figures show.
A total of 9,437 mortgages to the value of €3.034bn were drawn down by borrowers – the highest first three-month figure since 2008 when €6.266bn was borrowed.
Brian Hayes, chief executive of the Banking and Payments Federation Ireland which collects the data, said: “Our latest mortgage drawdowns data for Q1 2026 points to moderate growth in activity, with volumes up 2.4% to 9,437 and values up 7.8% to over €3.03bn year-on-year.
“This was driven primarily by first-time buyers, with 5,626 FTB [first-time buyer] drawdowns valued at more than €1.8bn.
“These were the strongest first quarter FTB volumes since 2007 and the highest values since 2006. “In contrast, mover-purchase activity remained subdued, with volumes down 9.4% year-on-year to 1,768, the lowest first-quarter level since 2014.”
While drawdowns have boomed, loan approvals are down slightly, the figures show.
2,805 mortgage approvals were for first-time buyers, more than 62% of the total
The number approved in March fell by 0.9% year-on-year.
Of the 4,482 mortgages approved, 2,805 were for first-time buyers, more than 62% of the total, while mover-purchasers accounted for 777, or just over 17%.
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