Mortgage approvals continued to grow in April as first-time buyer activity reached new highs – latest figures from BPFI
- There were 2,922 first-time buyer (FTB) approvals valued at almost €1 billion (€965 million) in April, the highest April levels since the data series began in 2011.
- 31,853 FTB mortgages valued at almost €10 billion (€9,999 million) were approved in the twelve months ending April 2025, the highest activity levels since the data series began.
Friday 30th May 2025 – Banking & Payments Federation Ireland (BPFI) has today published the latest figures from the BPFI Mortgage Approvals Report for April 2025. The following are the key elements:
- A total of 4,705 mortgages were approved in April 2025 – first-time buyers (FTBs) were approved for 2,922 mortgages (62.1% of total volume) while mover purchasers accounted for 845 (18.0%).
- The number of mortgages approved rose by 4.7% month-on-month and by 5.8% compared with the same period last year.
- Mortgages approved in April were valued at €1,502 million – of which FTBs accounted for €965 million (64.2%) and mover purchasers for €317 million (21.1%).
- The value of mortgage approvals rose by 5.1% month-on-month and by 13.6% year-on-year.
- Re-mortgage/switching activity rose by 53.5% in volume terms year-on-year and rose by 74.8% in value in the same period.
Commenting on the publication of the latest data, Brian Hayes, Chief Executive, BPFI said: “The latest mortgage figures show continued growth in approvals in April 2025, with volumes up by 5.8% year on year and values up 13.6% over the same period. There were 2,922 first-time buyer (FTB) approvals valued at almost €1 billion (€965 million) in April, the highest April levels since the data series began in 2011. While the volume of mover purchase approvals fell by 5.9%, the value of those approvals rose by 0.7% to €317 million, the highest April level since the data series began.”
“In annualised terms, 31,853 FTB mortgages valued at almost €10 billion (€9,999 million) were approved in the twelve months ending April 2025, the highest activity levels since the data series began. The value of mover purchase approvals also reached a new high at €3,954 million over the same period.”
Mr Hayes concluded: “We can see from today’s figures that lenders are supporting more and more FTBs, which points to a healthy pipeline for lending in the coming months. However, FTB housing demand is also growing, as evidenced by the 14,554 applications for Help to Buy in the first three months of 2025. This is up from 9,991 in the same period of 2024.”
The BPFI Mortgage Approval Report April 2025 is available here.
The BPFI Mortgage Approvals report data series since January 2011 is available to download here.
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Note: Banking & Payments Federation Ireland (BPFI) represents the banking, payments and fintech sector in Ireland. Together with its affiliates, the Federation of International Banks in Ireland, and the Fintech & Payments Association of Ireland, BPFI has over 120 member institutions and associates, including licensed domestic and foreign banks and institutions operating in the financial marketplace.
Contact: Fiona Murphy, Head of Communications, fiona.murphy@bpfi.ie.
