Mortgage approvals were almost 27 per cent higher in October than in the same month a year earlier, according to Irish Banking Federation figures.

Lenders in the State approved a total of 1,677 mortgages in October, up by 26.9 per cent year on year and 10.3 per cent on the previous month, the IBF Mortgage Approvals Report says.

Some 1,565 of that figure were approvals for house purchase, a 37 per cent rise on October of last year, and 112 were re-mortgages or mortgage top-ups, down 38.5 per cent on the same period last year.

The total value of mortgages approved last month was €283 million, of which some €273 million (96 per cent) was used for house buying.

The value of mortgages for house purchase was 33.2 per cent higher in October than in the same month last year.

The average value of an approved mortgage for house purchase fell by 3 per cent year on year to €174,677, the report states.

IBF spokesman Felix O’Regan said the availability of mortgage interest relief was regarded as a contributory factor and that it remained to be seen what effect the abolition of the relief after December 31st would have.