Will struggling mortgage holders be given the relief they deserve? 

A new EU directive regarding mortgage repossessions could spell good news for Irish homeowners struggling with their repayments

with the new EU Directive on Credit Servicers and Credit Purchasers, for borrowers who are not insolvent but who are in mortgage arrears we have new guidelines for forbearance (including, where possible, partial debt forgiveness). 

The only guarantee that we have (if, indeed, we have any such) that there will ever be enough money available for the public to buy houses is that the banks lending that money will have confidence that their investment will be repaid.

This is the commercial reality in the global market for capital, and any legal intervention modifying the contractual obligations of housing finance has to be carefully judged.