First-time buyers in Ireland pay an average of €173 more per month on their mortgage compared to the Eurozone.

The figure is an approvals increase of 14.5% on the previous month and 21% compared to the same time last year.

The Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has called for changes to the Central Bank mortgage lending rules.

Almost 5,000 mortgages valued at more than €1.1bn were approved in May.

Irish homeowners are paying almost €2,000 more a year for their mortgage than their European counterparts.

UK retail banking customers enjoy the benefits of a highly competitive market which has seen aggressive pressures on mortgage pricing, personal loan pricing, and savings rates.

There has been an increase in the number of new mortgages being drawn down.

Less than 1% of customers switched their mortgage last year, according to the Central Bank. That’s shocking.

Latest figures from the Banking and Payments Federation Ireland, show that 3,364 mortgages were approved last month - an 11% increase compared to the previous month.

Almost a quarter of the population have only ever borrowed money for a mortgage.

Mortgage approval rates for November show the majority of lending continues to be for first-time buyers.

Customers will have to be told if they can make savings on their mortgage under new Central Bank rules that come into effect today.

Irish mortgage rates are ending another year as the most elevated in Europe and are likely to remain so without Government or Central Bank action as the era of cheap money draws to an end.

Ireland continues to have Europe's highest mortgage interest rates.

Irish mortgage rates, the highest in Europe, will be part of the talks between Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael in their discussions on renewing their supply and confidence agreement, Davy analysts have said, after Fianna Fáil’s bid to force regulation over interest rates “run aground”.

Finance Ireland has said that it is accelerating its plans to buy mortgage origination business Pepper Money in Ireland for an undisclosed amount.

First-time buyers are paying almost €157 more for their mortgage each month compared to the European average.

Almost half of first-time buyers have loans of up to 34 years, according to Central Bank figures — “insanely long” terms costing such homeowners tens of thousands of euro more in interest, a consumer expert has said.

Credit Unions are preparing to enter the mortgage market.

Almost half of all mortgages are going to first-time buyers.

The rates will be 1% less than what's currently on offer, and will be available to both new holders and mortgage switchers.

The Government “needs to show its teeth” and call banks to task on mortgage rates, which remain among the highest in the eurozone, according to a consumer body.

The price of new builds for first-time buyers will continue to rise by an annual 5% to 6% for the next few years, although the Central Bank’s mortgage lending rules are weighing on prices in the second-hand market, says Glenveagh Properties.

Mortgage lending is “going in the right direction” but also “much smaller than it should be”, according to an organisation representing brokers.

Figures released by the Central Bank today revealed that Irish mortgage customers continue to pay higher interest rates than customers in any other country in the Eurozone.

Permanent TSB is being criticised for selling off non-performing mortgages worth €1.3bn to a vulture fund.

Credit unions have moved a step closer to adding mortgage lending to their suite of services.

Lenders have to do more when it comes to advising customers about switching their mortgage plans, the Central Bank has warned.

Concerns are being raised about how lenders engage with the Help to Buy scheme, which more than 1,100 people have applied for.

New figures show that mortgage approval rates continued to strengthen last month.

A huge annual surge of over €4.7bn in household savings reveals the challenge facing young buyers because of the year-old Central Bank mortgage lending rules, Savills estate agent has claimed.

The introduction of the Central Bank’s rules on mortgage lending earlier this year is dampening the growth of house prices, according to economists.

The Finance Minister Michael Noonan has again backed the Central Bank mortgage rules, saying that earlier this year it "looked a bit scary" that another housing bubble was starting.

Irish homeowners could cut their mortgage rates in half under plans to open up the lending market right across the EU.

Mr Noonan has long since paid off any mortgage on his family home and has never had to pay the mortgage on his Dublin home as the Irish taxpayer has (repeatedly) paid for that capital asset, as they have done for the likes of Mr Kenny, Mr Martin, Mr Adams and others.

Cabinet ministers appear at odds on whether the Central Bank should relax lending rules for first-time buyers.

The Finance Minister Michael Noonan has indicated he would like to see a review of the Central Bank's mortgage caps for first-time buyers.

Ulster Bank is to cut mortgage interest rates for low-risk borrowers.

Fianna Fáil is claiming the Central Bank has serious questions to answer following revelations that it was warned in 2009 about the tracker mortgage scandal at PTSB.

Serious failures by Permanent TSB has led to people losing their homes, a damning investigation has revealed.

The country’s largest mortgage-selling group has forecast a rise of only 5% in home-loan lending next year, suggesting the modest interest-rate cuts by lenders will do little to lure first-time buyers into the market.

Fianna Fáil is calling for the Central Bank to be given the power to cap interest rates on mortgages.

Finance Minister Michael Noonan has confirmed banks have agreed to start lowering their variable mortgage interest rates from July.

The Minister for Finance Michael Noonan is expected to publish a report this afternoon which will say lenders have agreed to cut their variable rates for mortgages, or offer their customers new deals.