More than €670m worth of Irish mortgages are to be sold to a US-based private equity firm for an undisclosed sum.

Subprime lenders only account for 3% of mortgage lending but they have been responsible for up to a quarter of all home repossessions, according to figures released by the Central Bank.

A BACKLOG of home repossession cases before the High Court has led to an eight-week delay for future hearings, the longest waiting period for such cases.

A LANDLORD’S rental income has dropped so much that he is unable to meet mortgage repayments on a €1.5 million loan, a court was told yesterday.