"Sherry FitzGerald Financial Services MD, Shane Quinlan, Optimistic About 2024 Mortgage Market Despite 17% Drop in 2023 – Highlights First-Time Buyer Surge and Anticipates Switching Uptick"
Statement by Sherry FitzGerald Financial Services MD, Shane Quinlan
Friday, January 24th, 2024
Commenting on the recently released mortgage figures from the Banking and Payments Federation of Ireland, Shane Quinlan, Managing Director of Sherry FitzGerald Financial Services, expressed optimism regarding the 2024 mortgage market outlook. Despite a 17% year-on-year decline in total mortgage lending in 2023, he noted that the demand for home finance from first-time buyers is at its highest point in over 15 years. He attributed this trend to demographic factors and highlighted the role of Government Schemes like Help to Buy and the First Home Shared Equity schemes in facilitating first-time buyers' entry into the property market.
Mr Quinlan said that “60% of mortgage lending in Ireland last year was to First Time Buyers and this in consistent with what we have seen in our own business, both in terms of new lending and new enquiries. The falloff in total lending in 2023 is due to much lower levels of switching as interest rates increased on the back of the ten ECB rate changes since July 2022. Despite the ongoing constraints with housing supply, we expect mortgage lending for home purchasing to remain strong in 2024. An uplift in switching activity is also likely towards the back end of 2024 due to prospective interest rate decreases and more competition as new mortgage lenders enter the Irish market.”
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For any further information, please contact:
Jill O’Neill
PR Director
Sherry FitzGerald Group
Ph: 01 2376 500 / 086 252 3277
