Ulster Bank Confirms New £500M Mortgage Fund for Northern Ireland

30th March 2010

Ulster Bank today announced that it is committing £500 million of new mortgage lending to the Northern Ireland housing market over the next 12 months.

The bank lent in excess of £400m in new mortgages to Northern Ireland customers in 2009 - a figure which included a 600 per cent increase in lending to the first time buyer market.

Ulster Bank says that statistics from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML)** support its own view that the bank took the largest share of new mortgage business in Northern Ireland in 2009 and accounted for almost half of all lending to the first time buyer market.

But it says that it is committed to increasing its level of mortgage lending still further and wants to see more demand from all types of mortgage seekers, including first time buyers, movers and those trading up if it is to meet the £500m commitment.

In January, the bank also reaffirmed its commitment to offering the shared equity Co-Ownership mortgage - which assists intending first time buyers unable to finance a property outright - having accounted for almost two thirds of mortgage lending for purchasers through Co-Ownership in 2009.

Ulster Bank’s Chief Executive of Retail Markets, Mike Bamber, welcomed the 2009 figures and said that the bank is committed to further increasing its level of mortgage lending in Northern Ireland.

"2009 was a busy year for mortgage lending at Ulster Bank in which we achieved new personal bests. We were delighted to lead the way with innovative and unique offerings like our Momentum and Co-Ownership mortgages*, as well as highly competitive mortgage offers. We think that lending more than £400m to the Northern Ireland mortgage market in 2009 was a significant achievement, given the economic and market conditions," Mike Bamber said.

"This year brings similar challenges to 2009 in terms of market conditions. However, we would like to increase our lending further and will be working hard to do so. We’d love to see increased customer demand for mortgages in 2010 and promise to be there ready to help buyers" Bamber continued.

YOUR HOME MAY BE REPOSSESSED IF YOU DO NOT KEEP UP REPAYMENTS ON YOUR MORTGAGE.

Lending criteria, terms and conditions apply and Security & insurance are required. Over 18s only. Early repayment charges also apply.