In the early months of this year, the pickings were decidedly slim when it came to decent mortgage rates.
Central Bank of Ireland figures for March, for example, showed the average new mortgage rate at the time was a distinctly unappealing 4.31 per cent, making Ireland the sixth most expensive country in the eurozone in which to take out a home loan.
Happily for today’s new borrowers or switchers, though, things have improved somewhat since, with recent rate reductions from several lenders meaning homeowners get to hang on to a little more of their hard-earned cash. Permanent TSB last week trimmed up to a full percentage point off its three-year fixed rate for mortgages with a low loan-to-value (LTV) rate.