Your mortgage is probably your biggest monthly cost, so whether you’re thinking of buying a home, or years into your mortgage with the same bank, knowing what’s available in the market could put thousands of euro back into your pocket.
There’s been an early rate shake-up this year with news from Avant Money last week that will please new borrowers and switchers alike – especially if your home has a low building energy rating (Ber).
The lender is cutting its fixed rates by up to 0.35 of a percentage point. It is also doubling its cashback to borrowers to 2 per cent of the mortgage value. So if you borrow €400,000, you can receive €8,000 cash back within two months of your drawdown.
The changes take effect for new mortgage drawdowns from next Monday, January 19th.
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“This materially improves affordability for both first-time buyers and switchers,” says Margaret Barrett of Mortgage Navigators.
Avant has also introduced a new high-value mortgage for loans of €300,000 or more. These offer rates from 3.2 per cent, fixed for four years, for loans less than 60 per cent of the property’s value.
This is good news for those borrowing bigger amounts, an area of increasing demand due to rising property values, says Barrett.
With the number of houses for sale remaining low in 2026, and prices predicted to increase by 3-4 per cent this year according to DNG, buyers are seeking maximum borrowings, she says.
One in seven of all housing transactions was settled for at least 20 per cent over the asking price last year, with two in five settled at 10 per cent or more, according to MyHome.ie.
Repayments on a high-value mortgage of €500,000 that is below 60 per cent loan-to-value over 30 years at 3.2 per cent will now be €660 lower each year compared with the existing four-year fixed rate, the lender says.
It is worth noting, however, that Avant’s cashback offer excludes this four-year high-value mortgage rate as well as the same lender’s variable rate Flex Mortgage product where the rate is linked to the Euribor.
Avant’s rates are available regardless of your Ber, giving those buying older properties more choice.
“Avant is now competing very well even with green rates available through other lenders,” says Sean Corbett, director of mortgages at SYS Mortgages. With the bonus of 2 per cent cash back on some fixed rates, it makes them a really good option for switchers and buyers alike, he says.
“Avant is very clearly signalling that it wants a bigger slice of the Irish mortgage market in 2026.”
Illustrating the widening gap in rates available to homeowners and prospective buyers alike, just a day before the Avant move ICS Mortgages announced an increase to its fixed-rate residential mortgage offerings. Kicking in from January 9th, the increases range from a quarter point to 0.45 of a percentage point on previous rates.
Upward movement in rates naturally makes borrowers apprehensive about what lies ahead, but there is “no need to panic”, says SYS Mortgages’ Corbett.
“This does not automatically signal a broader shift across the mortgage market and we do not expect the main retail bank lenders to follow ICS’s move,” he said. “The main banks fund a significant portion of their lending through customer deposits rather than wholesale borrowing, which gives them far greater insulation from short-term market volatility.”
Be promiscuous
Current account, credit card, mortgage ... once upon a time you were faithful to one bank. Loyalty rarely pays, however. If you do one thing in 2026, get promiscuous.
Shopping around on insurance and electricity can save you hundreds of euro, and, when it comes to your mortgage, tens of thousands. It pays to be unfaithful to your mortgage provider.
Younger borrowers increasingly don’t have a primary relationship with a traditional retail bank, managing their finances digitally rather than having a branch connection, says Doddl.ie’s Martina Hennessy.
“They don’t have the same emotional connection to their bank and are comfortable seeking impartial advice and looking at all choices,” she says.
A mortgage broker can tap into offers from six or seven lenders, all vying for your business.
“Our lowest mortgage rate across all banks is 3 per cent, our highest is 6.15 per cent,” says Mortgage Navigators’ Barrett. On a mortgage of €300,000, this can mean the difference of overpaying or saving tens of thousands of euro.
Last year brought more segmentation and splintering to the Irish mortgage market, with new lenders recognising that one size doesn’t fit all. Expect more of this.
Núa Money, MoCo and Avant Money are increasingly serving borrowers that traditional banks left out in the cold, including people who are self-employed, those with variable or multiple income streams and switchers seeking better value, according to Hennessy of Doddl.ie.
Núa Money, for example, caters to the thousands of customers who can afford to pay a mortgage but who were locked out by outdated lending models.
Núa doesn’t need evidence of “repayment capacity”, something of a sticking point for traditional lenders. People whose bank statements don’t show monthly rental payments now have a mortgage available to them. If you have the right net disposable income, Núa is happy.
“Not needing to demonstrate repayment capacity is a game changer for the Irish market,” says Barrett.
While Núa’s rates aren’t the cheapest, their credit policy takes variable pay, such as a bonus or overtime, into consideration, and quite generously, says Barrett.
Rates start at a 3.6 per cent for a three-year fix for customers with a loan-to-value ratio of 60 per cent, or 3.65 per cent if you fix for five years. For those with loan-to-value of 70 per cent, the three- and five-year fixed rates are 3.9 and 3.95 per cent respectively.
The lender also offers loans to immigrant visa holders who have been here for six months and have passed work probation.
Núa, and lender MoCo, also take social welfare and child maintenance into consideration, says Barrett.
“These lenders suit a specific type of applicant where they can borrow a higher amount than with the pillar banks,” she says.
MoCo’s interest rates rival any of the main lenders when you are not talking about an A or a B energy-rated property, says Barrett. It offers a three- or a five-year fix at a rate of 3.8 per cent for a loan that is 90 per cent loan to value, and 3.6 per cent for a 70 to 80 per cent loan to value.
The ICS Flexi product, offering interest-only payments in the first two years, can suit those moving home who may plan to eventually sell their old property down the line, says Barrett.
Corbett says he sees a number of first-time buyers buying properties in excess of €1 million. They are interested in Avant’s Flex product which, from 3.17 per cent, is the lowest variable rate in the market. It allows for overpayments without penalty.
Need for speed
With a dearth of properties for sale, buyers who can move fast and prove they are in a position to close are more likely to succeed. When competing with several other buyers, a speedy loan offer can even trump the interest rate.
“I had it dropped on me before Christmas that a deadline of January 6th was given to a buyer or they would lose their dream home,” says Corbett.
“One of the main banks was dragging their heels so I went to Núa Money and although they are paying a slightly higher interest rate, Núa produced an offer within three days and the buyer was able to complete the sale by the deadline. That was possible because the application was all digital,” says Corbett.
Núa wasn’t offering the cheapest rate, but they could get the deal over the line faster.
“It was thousands more over a three-year period, but are you willing to pay an extra €10,000 in repayments over three years to get your dream home and then refinance after three years, or are you going to be stuck looking for another six months?
“Prices are due to go up by another 5 per cent this year so that €10,000 you could be paying anyway if you lose the property,” says Corbett.
Alongside Núa, MoCo too is approving loans at record speed, says Barrett. “They are digital lenders, so decisions are made exceptionally quickly. Núa will turn around an application in a couple of hours.”
A mortgage launch by Revolut, which has more than three million customers in Ireland, is rumoured to be in the pipeline for this year. The lender already offers mortgages in Lithuania directly through its app with the loan rate linked to the Euribor rate.
“I predict they will come with a digital application that will rival the pillar banks and launch with a product aimed towards the switcher market,” says Barrett.
UK digital bank Monzo is also expected to expand its banking services to the Irish market this year, aiming at tech-savvy, digital-first customers.
Switching
Will this year be the year to switch your mortgage? If you’re paying anything more than 3.5 per cent on your home loan and have €150,000 or more left on it, then you need to have a conversation with a mortgage broker, says Barrett.
“They can tell you within 15 minutes whether it’s worth switching or staying where you are,” says Barrett.
We know there are a significant number of mortgage holders who are paying more interest on their loan than they need to, she says.
“The possible savings we are talking about are not just €1,000 or €2,000 a year, it’s €10,000 to €15,000 a year in interest and repayments, so it’s the big cost saving you can make,” says Barrett.
Borrowers with balances over €300,000 were more inclined to switch, as were borrowers aged 18-34, compared with borrowers aged 45 and over, according to research by KPMG on behalf of Doddl.ie.
The broker saw a 138 per cent uplift in the value of mortgage switching last year, with the vast majority of those switching being Dublin-based and having an outstanding mortgage balance of more than €250,000.
“In a cost-of-living crisis, your mortgage is the biggest outgoing in any household, so talking to a broker about switching is the most prudent call you will make in 2026,” says Barrett.
Rate outlook
Where are rates going in 2026? At its meeting before Christmas, the European Central Bank (ECB) kept its main interest rate unchanged at 2 per cent.
The economy has been resilient, despite tariffs. Annual inflation of 1.9 per cent is expected for 2026, the ECB said, though the inflation outlook is “more uncertain than usual”, ECB president Christine Lagarde warned, due to the “volatile international environment”.
What does that mean for your mortgage?
“I think rates are going to stay as they are at the moment, with fixed rates starting at 3 per cent, which is still good value compared to 18 months ago. I don’t see too much of a shift in rates,” says Corbett.
“While it’s unlikely that the ECB will reduce rates further in 2026, there is also no indication of any sharp upward movement,” he says. “As things stand, the very competitive fixed rates currently available are unlikely to disappear overnight.”
“I think we are going to see a steady year ahead,” says Barrett.
“The ECB has indicated things will remain steady for now. While lenders are always keeping their rates under review and the anticipation is that there will be no rate reduction coming our way, that doesn’t mean lenders won’t adjust their rates in the coming year,” she says.
