Alarm over rising early stage mortgage arrears

Advocates for debt-saddled homeowners said they are shocked by official figures showing a rise in new early-stage mortgage arrears.

New Central Bank figures showed accounts in arrears for up to 90 days rose to 23,322 at the end of March, even as all other categories of longer-term arrears fell.

Early arrears have now risen for two straight quarters at a time when all indicators show the economy is growing at a fast pace.