More than 32,000 mortgage holders are in arrears with about two-thirds of them unable to meet payments for more than six months, official figures have revealed. The Central Bank said that since the start of the year there has been a 13% increase in the number of homes falling behind in repayments.
Despite the increase, the amount of court actions taken against borrowers in difficulty dropped by 4.8% over the first three months. Just over 3,000 cases, including moves toward repossession, were before the court at the end of March as banks chased arrears of 90 million euro.
In the first three months of the year, lenders took 161 cases to court - a fall of almost a third compared with the last three months of 2009. The Central Bank said mortgages in arrears are worth a total 6.1 billion euro.
The Irish Banking Federation (IBF) said the figures showed banks which agree to postpone loan repayments are greatly assisting distressed homeowners. Pat Farrell, IBF chief executive, said: "It is very reassuring to note that forbearance is working for a great many homeowners.
"IBF mainstream lenders remain committed to doing everything possible to help people with genuine repayment problems to manage their debts and to stay in their homes; and the increasing level of arrears linked to the general economic situation confirms the desirability and indeed the necessity of this approach."
Lenders had 456 repossessed homes on their books at the end of March. Some 91 homes were taken from borrowers in the first three months of the year and 32 were disposed of by mortgage lenders.
The Central Bank said since the start of the year 26 were repossessed following court orders and 65 were voluntarily surrendered or abandoned.
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