The average couple buying a home in Ireland is paying slightly less towards their mortgage the latest affordability index from ESB Building Society and DKM Consultants shows.
The index reveals over the past eight months, the average working couple who are first time buyers in Ireland spent a consistent 24 per cent of their net income on mortgage repayments, compared with 26.4 percent in December 2006.
The report says over the past eight months there has been little change in the relative costs of a new mortgage for the average working couple as first time buyers in Ireland because a slight decline in house prices off-set the recent mortgage rate hike.
Since December 2005, there have been eight interest rate increases of 0.25 per cent each.
There is the possibility of another interest rate increase of 0.25 per cent in September, although recent reports suggest this increase may be avoided.
The EBS/DKM Affordability Index is an indication of a first time buyer couple's mortgage-paying commitments in the early years, on the presumption that each of them is on average earnings and buying the "average" new house.