Minister for Finance Michael Noonan has dealt a blow to potential first time buyers by ruling out plans to extend mortgage interest relief introduced in last year's budget.
In 2012, the Government provided 25 per cent mortgage interest relief for first time buyers and 15 per cent relief for non-first time buyers for purchases in 2012.
"I want to emphasise that this mortgage interest relief measure will come to an end at the end of this year," Mr Noonan said at an event in Dublin today.
"There will be no extension to this measure and prospective purchasers should make sure to factor in the time required between purchase and mortgage drawdown in order to qualify for mortgage interest relief."
The property market has suffered a significant fall in recent years. Home values have fallen by around 50 per cent since the peak hit in 2007, according to the Residential Property Price Index compiled by the Central Statistics Office.
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