A parrot has been annoying neighbours by screeching out taxi bookings.

IIB Homeloans have today cut its three- and five-year fixed rate mortgages as well as introducing a new Flexi Saver mortgage product.

IIB HOMELOANS yesterday announced a 25-30 basis point reduction across its three- and five-year fixed rate mortgages in a bid to increase its competitiveness in the Irish lending market.

Turmoil in world financial markets and nervousness about the Irish economic outlook mean Irish house prices could slip by a further 5% in coming months, according to a forecast by IIB Bank.