The reduction follows the recent announcement that EBS has extended its 3% Back in Cash offer to 31st December for new mortgage customers.
Making the first steps on the road to buying your own home can be a tricky one to say the least. And as first-time buyers search for certainty and reasonable rates, a recent announcement from mortgage lender EBS may have come at just the right time.
Announcing a reduction in all of its fixed rates, EBS has made a conscious step to provide better value for first-time buyers. Every little helps, to borrow a phrase...
Who is the EBS?
Established in 1935 by Alex McCabe and a small group of teachers who, working collectively, helped each other out in buying their own homes.
The building society has and continues to provide a range of financial services to its customers nationwide, including mortgage, pension, and daily banking services.
Rate changes
The changes will see the EBS reduce all of its fixed rates by 0.10%, with all fixed rates from one to five years being reduced to 2.90% from 3%.
The new rates are available to first-time buyers, movers and those switching mortgage to the EBS.
The reduction in rates follows a recent announcement from the EBS that it has extended its '3% Back in Cash' offer which gives new mortgage customers up to 3% of their mortgage amount back in a cash lump sum. (Customers wishing to avail of this offer must draw down their mortgage between 1st January 2019 and 31st December 2020).
The EBS fixed-rate changes come into effect on Wednesday 13th November 2019 for all new and existing EBS customers.
Value for money
The mortgage rate reduction represents good value for those looking for fixed-rate certainty and will account for a saving of around €145 a year for the average first-time buyer.
With the extension of the '3% Back in Cash' offer for new customers, those drawing down new mortgages for the first time with EBS will see a return of €3,000 for every €100,000 borrowed, which is a considerable amount for those seeking value for money.
Although this rate change is good news for Irish consumers, mortgage rates in Ireland still remain higher than almost any other country in the Eurozone. See our blog post from earlier this year to see why mortgage rates in Ireland are so high.
Speaking about the rate change, EBS Chief Executive Des Fitzgerald said:
“EBS are delighted to announce our new fixed rate of 2.90% for up to five years for new and existing customers. Coupled with the recent announcement that EBS have extended our Back in Cash offering until the end of 2020, this represents significant value for mortgage customers looking for fixed-rate certainty.”
Tell us what you think
Do you think the new rates from the EBS are good value for first-time buyers? Let us know in the comments below or over on social media.
And if you’re on the hunt for a cheaper mortgage you can easily compare all rates and offers across all lenders right now with our Mortgage Calculator!
