Govt-backed mortgage scheme prompts 'quite substantial' response from property hunters

There has been a surge in interest for the new Government-backed mortgage scheme.

Daft.ie say there was a 9% rise in searches for properties that qualify for the scheme last week.

Under the plans, some first-time buyers can get a mortgage from local authorities for properties up to €320,000 in the greater Dublin area, Cork or Galway.

The cap in the rest of the country is €250,000.

Martin Clancy from Daft.ie says the scheme has captured people's attention.

He said: "What it has certainly done is it has lifted a response from property hunters, because the week directly after the minister made his announcement, there was a 9% increase which is quite substantial.

"When you see things like this emerge, you definitely see that Irish people have responded, and people are searching for properties that fall within those two price brackets now than they were before the minister made the announcement."