Seeds of growth

A BRAND new start.

A clean slate. Word is 2012 is the year to buy. Well, that’s the gospel being promulgated by the Minister for Finance Michael Noonan. And he’s teed up the this year as the platform from which to kick start the property market. How does the new math work, though?

First-time buyers — inside this year only, mind you — can get their hands on mortgage interest relief to the tune of 25%. And that’ll be for the first two years. From there on, the figure will drop to 22.5% in years 3, 4 and 5, and 20% for the final two.