Home mortgage lending in first ever fall

RESIDENTIAL mortgage lending fell last month for the first time on record.

The €100 million net fall in residential mortgage lending represented the first reverse since the Central Bank began compiling statistics in 1990 and shows how new lending failed to keep pace with repayments on existing mortgages.

The bank said the figures reflect low levels of activity in the housing market during the early part of the year. The total amount outstanding on residential mortgages at the end of the month was €148.2 billion, down from €148.3bn at the end of the previous month.