Housing

New mortgage limits put first-time buyers at risk as interest rates increase

Central Bank report found that a two-percentage point hike could lead to households spending up to 40 per cent of their monthly take-home pay on mortgage repayments

Gabriel Makhlouf, governor of the Central Bank of Ireland: announced a loosening of the mortgage lending rules from January. Picture: Domnick Walsh

First-time buyers who avail of the new maximum mortgage limits could be pushed into financial distress if interest rates are raised by a further two percentage points, research by the Central Bank of Ireland (CBI) has found.

The European Central Bank (ECB) is expected to hike interest rates again this week, and could bring them to 2 per cent next year. The ECB has already hiked rates twice this year, in July and September, by ...