Loan approvals at the State-backed lender Home Building Finance Ireland (HBFI) doubled in the first six months of the year, new data a shows, rising to €398 million as demand continued to grow.
That brings total approvals to €2.1 billion, with funding approved for 11,200 homes across 162 developments.
“An increase of this size reflects the really strong and sustained demand for new homes and the significant appetite among small, medium and large housebuilding companies to meet that demand if they can get the finance they need,” said HBFI chief executive Dara Deering. “We’re now in our sixth year in business and we’re made a significant contribution to accelerating housing supply by approving funding for over 11,000 new homes in 23 counties across Ireland.”
HBFI said €1.32 billion had been drawn down to date, with an expected time lag of between three and six months between initial approvals and drawdowns. Loans range between €1 million and €108 million for a period of 22 months, with an average of €13 million.
The data showed houses made up 66 per cent of approvals, with apartments at 34 per cent. Almost 6,000 homes have been sold, contracted for sale or sale agreed, with 48 per cent of the homes for owner-occupiers and 38 per cent for social or affordable housing.
HBFI was set up by the Government to fund new homes. The State-backed lender for builders opened for business in January 2019 with an initial war chest of €750 million from the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund to fund the delivery of up to 7,500 new homes over five years.
Among the initiatives that HBFI has introduced is the Accelerate product, which is aimed at larger developers to address what it identified as an emerging gap in the market.
“Following a review by the Minister of Finance in 2023, this product was introduced for developers who may be constrained in raising additional finance. HBFI has already concluded a number of transactions using this product,” said Minister for Finance, Jack Chambers. “Through its broad product range, and agile business model, HBFI plays a key role in the Government’s strategy to accelerate the supply of new housing and meet the targets set out under the Government’s Housing for All plan.”
