Central Bank reveals the value of mortgage approvals by banks for first six months of 2016

The Central Bank has reported that €2.3bn in mortgage loans were approved by banks in the first half of this year.

The Central Bank issued a new economic letter to give an overview of residential mortgage lending that took place here between January and June.

The report details the level of lending under new mortgage rules, with €2.3bn said to be drawn down by property buyers in the period.

They said that the average value of loans for first-time buyers was €180,011, with an average property price of €244,320 and average income of €65,944.

For other buyers the average loan drawn down was €211,662, with an average property price of €380,752 and an average income of €105,473.