ICS Mortgages Raises Interest Rates for Fifth Time This Year Amid Ongoing Central Bank Hikes

ICS Mortgages, a non-bank lender, has increased its interest rates for the fifth time this year. The latest hike affects both fixed and variable rates, with new home-loan fixed rates increasing by between 0.45% and 0.5% from Thursday. Variable rates will rise by 0.25% from November.

Broker Michael Dowling of Irish Mortgage Brokers said the rate increases will significantly impact mortgage holders, citing examples where repayments on a €300,000 loan would increase by €78 per month for fixed rates and €39 per month for variable rates.

The latest move sees some ICS Mortgages rates reach as high as 5.95%, with Dowling noting that the lender's variable rates are now 1.35 percentage points higher than the cheapest on the market, while their fixed rates are 2.8 points higher than the lowest rates available.

ICS Mortgages' parent company, Dilosk, agreed to sell itself to Pepper Advantage in August, but the sale price remains undisclosed. The European Central Bank raised interest rates for a second time this year last week, and some experts predict another increase before the end of the year.