Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 5 November 2014

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform

Overview of Banking Sector: Bank of Ireland

3:15 pm

Mr. Richie Boucher:

It is difficult to give a verified answer to that question because it is somewhat hypothetical. That is the product we offer. If, for example, we stated we could no longer offer someone a 90% mortgage, a proportion of our customers would say they were a bit disappointed but will take the 85%. It is hard to be definitive as to who would not have qualified. We make an offer to the customers, who state they would like this or that. When we assess customers, the primary assessment we make is on income capacity. We see the mortgage as security but as my colleague pointed out in response to an earlier question, we are looking at loans to individuals based on their assessment of their income capacity. If we look at the multiple in particular, there are two features to that. We look at the income multiples and the income multiple is the primary criterion under which we assess someone. If the income multiple does not meet our assessment of a person's ability to repay a mortgage, the loan to value is not a deciding factor. We start with the income capacity and then consider the potential drags on people's income. We also then assume that interest rates will not stay the same forever. We will assume in a sensitivity test that we will add approximately 250 to 300 basis points to make sure that if interest rates rise, a customer's repayment capacity, everything else being equal, still remains sufficient for the customer to service the mortgage. Thereafter, the loan to value comes into play. I do not know whether my colleagues wish to add anything to that.

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