Mortgage switching approvals drop more than 70% in May

Approvals for remortgaging or switching declined in May from 1,237 to 346 compared to the same period last year.
Mortgage approvals declined in May compared to the same period last year following a significant drop in switching activity, new figures from the Banking and Payments Federation of Ireland (BPFI) shows.
However, an increase in approvals among first-time buyers bucked the declining trend increasing by more than 20% from 2,640 to 3,170. The total value of these mortgages is €926m. The only other category to increase year-on-year was top mortgage approvals which increased from 277 to 300.