Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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90. To ask the Minister for Finance the proportion of mortgages currently in arrears that are also in negative equity; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5102/17]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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I have been informed by the Central Bank of Ireland that it does not publish a regular series of data on mortgages in negative equity.  The Deputy will be aware that the Central Bank's Household Credit Market Report contains data on negative equity.  The latest report is available athttp://www.centralbank.ie/publications/Documents/Household%20Credit%20Market%20Report%202016H2.pdf and table 7 in the report presents the percentage of loans in negative equity split by default status. The data in the Household Credit Market Report are for 2015 and do not reflect changes to loan balances and house prices since December 2015. The Central Bank estimates that 15 per cent of PDH loans and 26 per cent of BTL loans were in negative equity at end December 2015. 10 per cent of PDH and 14 per cent of BTL loans were deemed to be in negative equity and performing.

I would also refer the Deputy to the Central Bank Report on Mortgage Arrears, produced in response to a request from me to the Governor and published on 16th December and which may be viewed at http://www.finance.gov.ie/what-we-do/banking-financial-services/publications/reports-research/report-mortgage-arrears-2016.  This report includes an analysis of loan level data submission up to June 2016, including estimates of the proportion of PDH accounts currently in the legal process that were in negative equity.

In the mortgage market overall, the numbers in negative equity have been reducing and this has important implications for the wider economy such as improving mobility amongst those affected, potential greater spend on home improvements and maintenance, and increased consumption via the wealth effect.