Number of mortgage customers in arrears declines for sixth month

September marked the sixth consecutive month in which Ulster Bank saw the amount of mortgage customers in arrears for 90 days, or more, decline.

Although the bank doesn’t divulge just how many of its home loan customers are in arrears, its third quarter results, published yesterday, also show a significant deterioration in mortgage impairment charges, down from £91m (€17.5m) in the second quarter of the year to £30m for the three months to the end of September.

This drop largely reflects the recent stabilisation in residential property prices in the Republic, and Ulster Bank’s management said yesterday that it expects its impairment costs to continue to “gently decline” as the macro-economic picture in Ireland continues to improve.