Value of mortgage approvals in February highest for month since 2011 – The Irish Times

The value of mortgage approvals reached almost €1.2 billion in February, an increase of more than 10 per cent compared with the same period last year.

It was also the highest February value since the data series began in 2011.

New figures from Banking and Payments Federation Ireland (BPFI) showed a total of 3,649 mortgages were approved in the month, representing a rise by 20.3 per cent month-on-month and 6.7 per cent compared with the same period last year.

First-time buyers were approved for 2,316 mortgages, which was 63.5 per cent of the total volume, while mover purchasers accounted for 664, or 18.2 per cent.

Remortgage and switching activity fell by 12.3 per cent in volume terms year-on-year and rose by 1.4 per cent in value in the same period.

Mortgages approved were valued at almost €1.2 billion, of which first-time buyers accounted for €765 million (64.4 per cent) and mover purchasers for €243 million (20.5 per cent).

The value of mortgage approvals rose by 24.4 per cent month-on-month and by 10.1 per cent year-on-year, reflecting the steady of increase of house prices over that period.

Residential investment letting mortgage approval values increased by 18.7 per cent year-on-year to €16 million.

Switching and remortgage approval values rose by 1.4 per cent year-on-year to €125 million. Top-up approval values rose by 22.2 per cent to €38 million.

BPFI chief executive Brian Hayes said: “First-time buyers continue to dominate the market, accounting for almost two-thirds of approvals valued at €765 million, the highest February first-time buyer levels on record.

[ Future housing supply under threat after new builds fall by more than 75%Opens in new window ]

“Looking more broadly at the annualised figures, there were 53,132 mortgage approvals in the 12 months ending February, valued at almost €17 billion.

“The value of the annualised first-time buyer approvals also reached record levels, exceeding €10.5 billion during this period.”

Hayes said the February data indicates mortgage demand “remains robust, with first-time buyers continuing to drive activity across the market”.

“The Revenue Commissioners recently reported 27,899 Help-to-Buy applications from first-time buyers in 2025, an increase of 15.6 per cent on 2024, while the number of claims increased by 12.1 per cent to 9,575,” he said.

“In the first two months of 2026, there has already been 12,379 Help-to-Buy applications, about 54 per cent higher than in the same period of 2025.

“With more than 32,000 first-time buyer mortgage approvals in the 12 months ending February, there is a strong pipeline for lending in the months ahead.”

[ Irish housing market no longer ‘overheating’, but price pressures remain, says Daft.ieOpens in new window ]

Ireland’s housing market is showing signs that the period of “acute overheating” of prices that followed the Covid-19 pandemic is coming to an end, Daft.ie said last week.

Still, prices in urban areas are cooling at a faster pace than outside the cities amid continuing supply challenges.

In its latest housing market report, covering the first three months of 2026, the property website said listed home prices increased by 0.6 per cent between December and March.

It means the listed home prices have increased by 3.7 per cent over the past 12 months, the “slowest rate of increase since late 2023″, Daft said.