Warning amid upsurge in property prices

Banks must be prevented from exploiting the upsurge in urban property prices by forcing the sale of homes pushed back into positive equity in order to clear distressed mortgages, a new report warns.

With prices surging by more than 20% in some parts of Dublin, an Oireachtas finance committee probe is expected to demand lenders are locked into long-term solutions rather than “take the money and run” by insisting on sales for short-term gain.

Committee chairperson Ciarán Lynch has called on the Central Bank to monitor lenders to ensure sales only take place when there is no other viable solution.