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THE HEAD OF Ulster Bank has said over two-thirds of its first home buyers from this year wouldn’t have qualified for their loans under new Central Bank rules.
The bank’s chief executive, Jim Brown, yesterday told the Oireachtas Finance Committee that 68% of Ulster Bank’s customers that had bought their first property this year would have fallen foul of the proposed 20% minimum deposit required.
“The proposals, as they stand, will impact the ability of many first time buyers to acquire their home,” he said.
“In addition, other hopeful first time buyers will struggle to save a higher deposit while paying increasing rents.”
Over the past few days, the heads of the major banks were pulled before the committee and asked for their opinions on the Central Bank’s suggested lending rules as part of a probe into the banking sector.
The official lender wants borrowers to stump up a minimum 20% deposit for properties from January next year, although governor Patrick Honohan recently flagged he was open to loosening the policy.
Only 10% deposit needed
Brown said Ulster Bank currently allowed mortgages at up to 90% of a property’s value – meaning buyers only needed to come up with 10% from their savings.
But the head of AIB, David Duffy, who also fronted the committee yesterday, was more supportive of the Central Bank’s proposition if it helped create long-term stability in the property market.
He warned there could be some “unintended consequences” if the moves were brought in quickly and suggested they be phased in instead.
Brown also faced a barrage of questions over the bank’s mortgage interest rates after he admitted Ulster Bank’s margin – the share of interest it keeps from its overall loan business – was the highest of all the major lenders.
It charges a higher rate for its customers in the Republic than it does for those in Northern Ireland.
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Well done! I hope this money will be useful!
At last – a public official with HONOUR!!! Maybe he could do a Masterclass for the others (with no claimable expenses for the attendees!!)
Any chance he’d run for president? (or would it be cynical of me to have a little suspicion that might be why the article appeared???) I don’t care, I’d vote for him ;o)
He’s been asked about that before, actually, and ruled it out. :)
That is a shame Gavin. We could use someone with this kind of integrity.
Very noble, nice to see there’s at least one politician that’s not in it for the money
I’ve seen and heard this man on several occasions. He is a formidable and highly intelligent individual, the type of person Ireland needs now more than ever. No bluster or bullshit, just gets on with the job in hand. For the likes of Bertie & Cowen, a few hours in Mr Crown’s company would be an illuminating experience.
Fair play to you sir. A lot of (failed/wannabe) career politicians in the seanad could learn from your example. (Also great work in St Lukes – i’ll always be grateful to the fantastic people who work there.)
I’m a cancer researcher myself and from experience I can safely say this kind of money will go along way towards the lucky recipients
Fair play to him.It goes to show how much our TDs ect are on.Share the pain our goverment tells us.Its very easy to share the pain when your on 65000 euro and more.
Fair play to you sir! Now THAT’s the kind of patriotism this country needs from it’s politicians.
‘I make good money from my medical practice, I’m on a public salary… I made a decision at the time I was running for teh Seanad that it would not be appropriate for me to accept two public wages…’ Nothing to say after all these scrounger bonus-hunter greedy CEOs.
John Crown was, to his eternal credit, one of the most incisive and able critics of Harney’s health policies. He consistently came across as a committed patient advocate. His decision regarding his salary is commendable. No doubt the many ministers who retired before the last election are lining up to follow his example and do likewise with their generous lump sums. It is the least they could do having brought to country beyond the point of ruin.
A very noble gesture from a very noble man.
I have the pleasure to work with the Prof. (on the sidelines so to speak) and can vouch for his dedication to his patients which has not wavered since becoming a senator, if there were more like him in government, we’d be ‘laughing’. I put it out there, John Crown for president.
A gentleman in the best sense of the word. This is what this country needs to see from its leaders at this time: self-sacrifice, realism and fresh thinking combined – the very things that we the people are being asked for day-in, day-out, but never seem to see in the wealthy and powerful. Bravo.
Fair play to him… I suppose, considering he still earns 230,000 from the state plus his private practise, it would be shockingly financially greedy for him to take the 65K. However, now that he is working seannad hours for free, it must be said that he, and his family, are generous with their personal time, and that can be worth gold in itself.
Well done to him. I wish we had more of his caliber and decency.
I know he’s better off than most members of the Seanad but fair play to him all the same. Credit where credit is due. Fergal Quinn take note.
Pity Senator Crown is not going forward for president, he would make an ideal , candidate, he is articulate,
and has a clear no nonsense approach about politics and why thecountry is in the state its in now
I wonder how many of those who will be co gratulating Prof Crown for this can usually be found jumping on the "consultants are lazy money-grabbing bastards" bandwagon.
Oh and please don’t ask for a presidential run – he’s much more use to the country on an oncology ward.
The thing is he’s the exception rather than the rule in both the Seanad and as a consultant. He’s hard working and committed, unlike the f**ker of a consultant who my father turned up to see at an appointment one Friday afternoon (having travelled two hours to go see) only to be told the consultant had decided to leave early to go away for the weekend.
Ah yes, we should assume that your one interaction with one consultant once is the rule for how most consultants behave most of the time.
I’ve seen and heard this man on several occasions. He is a formidable and highly intelligent individual – the type of person Ireland needs now more than ever. No bluster or bullshit, just gets on with the job in hand. For the likes of Bertie & Cowen, a few hours in Mr Crown’s company would be an illuminating experience.
I will now for once ” Bow to the CROWN" and be proud to do so. !!
i think its amazing the effect a decent honest and honourable politician can have & judging by the other comments here so do many others. Imagine if we had a political situation where this was the norm ( a pipe dream i think ) .
However more importantly why we we resign to this being the case? ?
Am I the only one who thought, on reading this article, that it just goes to show that being a consultant obviously isn’t a full time job either, if he manages to fit it in around being a full time politician!
Also, how can he claim expenses and spend it on something else (even if it is something that’s needed), shouldn’t politicians, or any public sector worker, only be able to claim for money they have actually spent by producing receipts. I don’t know much about politics, but it seems wrong to me that one politician can decide where money we’re giving them goes – if he doesn’t need it, shouldn’t it go back into the government purse to be spent as out elected representatives see fit? I know on the face of it it all sounds very nobel, but is it not just an example of what’s wrong with this country?
Yes indeed, even someone with the brass neck of Prof Crown couldn’t really accept three salaries – his public salary, his private practice salary and a senators salary.
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