Bank of Ireland expands green mortgage availability as drawdowns top €1 billion

  • Green mortgage provides discount of 0.2% on our fixed rate offerings on fixed rate terms of 1 year and up to 10 years
  • Over €1 billion drawn down since launch of Ireland’s first Green mortgage in 2019
  • Now extending availability to customers who are buying or building properties with a Building Energy Rating (BER) of B3 or better as well as to customers who are retrofitting an existing property to a BER of B3 or better
  • Also available for the first time to customers switching from another lender on properties with a BER of B3 or better

Bank of Ireland is extending the availability of its Green mortgage. As well as being able to enjoy a lower rate on their mortgage, customers will benefit from lower heating and electricity bills if they choose a sustainable, energy efficient home. Over €1 billion has now been drawn down by borrowers since Ireland’s first green mortgage was launched in 2019.

Bank of Ireland’s Green mortgage, which offers a discount of 0.2 per cent off fixed rate mortgages on terms of 1 year to up to 10 years, is now available for those buying or building homes with a Building Energy Rating (BER) of B3 or better. The Green mortgage is also now, for the first time, available to customers switching from another lender if the BER of the property being mortgaged has a BER of B3 or better.

Earlier this month, Bank of Ireland announced a €3 billion increase in its Sustainable Finance Fund to bring it to €5 billion by 2024. The fund covers Bank of Ireland’s suite of green loans designed to incentivise home owners and businesses to be more energy efficient.

Alan Hartley, Director of Home Buying, Bank of Ireland said: “We launched our Sustainable Finance Fund and Ireland’s first green mortgage in 2019 because we wanted to play our part in supporting the green transition. The strong uptake of our green mortgage, with the amount drawn down now in excess of €1 billion, tells us that our customers want practical supports that can help them move towards a more energy efficient and sustainable future. That’s why we’re delighted to extend the availability of our green mortgage to include homes with a BER rating of B3 or better and we’re also making it available to switchers on homes with a BER rating of B3 or better.”

Green Mortgage Interest Rate:

Borrowers can receive a discount of 0.2% off fixed rate options on terms of 1 year and up to 10 years where a fixed term is selected at drawdown of the mortgage. This fixed rate discount will be available from drawdown on new borrowing to finance the purchase, construction, or renovation of residential buildings with at least a B rating or to achieve at least a B-rated BER energy performance and if you are switching your mortgage loan to us from another lender and the property has a BER of B3 or better.

 

Notes to Editor

Supporting the green transition is a core part of Bank of Ireland’s recently published Responsible and Sustainable Business Strategy, Investing in Tomorrow.

The Building Energy Rating, or BER, is an energy label with accompanying advisory report for homes. The rating is a simple A to G scale with A-rated homes being the most energy efficient.

The Government’s Climate Action Plan has set out a target of upgrading 500,000 older homes to a BER rating of B2 by 2030 and of installing 400,000 heat pumps. Since 2012 new properties in Ireland typically have a minimum rating of A3.

These propositional changes support the Government’s Climate Action Plan and Ireland’s commitment to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Ireland’s homes are responsible for one quarter of our overall energy use and 10% of our overall greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions*. Reducing the amount of energy and fossil fuels we use in our homes is an important part of the government’s Climate Action Plan. According to the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI), over 1 million homes in Ireland need investment to make them energy efficient.

*https://www.gov.ie/en/policy-information/ffe6c5-energy-efficiency/

 

Important information

Fixed Interest Rate Terms and Conditions

  • The Green Mortgage fixed interest rate is a discount (reduction) of 0.20% that we apply to our standard mortgage loan fixed rates.
  • The Green Mortgage fixed interest rate is available to you if you:
    • are buying a property that has a Building Energy Rating (BER) of B3 or better or are borrowing to build or up-grade your home so that it has a BER rating of B3 or better, OR
    • if you are switching your mortgage loan to us from another lender and the property has a BER of B3 or better, AND
    • you provide us with the BER certificate showing a rating of B3 or better before you draw down the loan (where you are borrowing to pay for building works, you provide us instead with specifications showing that rating will be achieved, and you provide the BER certificate once building works are complete), AND
    • draw down your new mortgage loan between 18 July 2019 and 30 June 2022.
  • The Green Mortgage fixed interest rate is available only if you choose a fixed interest rate that begins when you draw down your mortgage loan. It is not available with any of our variable rates.
  • The Green Mortgage fixed interest rate will apply to the mortgage loan for the period of your chosen fixed rate from the date the loan is drawn down. Our standard interest rate options for existing customers will apply at the end of that initial fixed rate period (so the discount ends then).
  • Full terms and conditions of your mortgage loan will be set out in your mortgage loan documentation including your Letter of Offer except that it will refer you to the dates for drawdown that we have set out above (so you need to take careful note of them and to bring them to the attention of your solicitor or builder if necessary).
  • The Green Mortgage fixed interest rate is not available (a) on mortgage loans to buy a residential property with a BER rating of C or lower; or (b) to build or up-grade a residential property to a BER rating of C or lower.
  • The Green Mortgage fixed interest rate is available on new borrowing to purchase a residential property rated B3 or better or to build or carry out improvements on a residential a property in order to achieve a BER rating of B3 or better or if you are switching your mortgage loan to the Bank of Ireland Group from another lender outside the our Group and the property has a BER of B3 or better. If you draw down your mortgage loan in stages (e.g. for a self-build or to improve an existing home):
    • the first drawdown must be made between 18 July 2019 and 30 June 2022 to qualify for the Green Mortgage fixed interest rate, AND
    • you must provide a detailed specification from your builder showing work to be undertaken to achieve a BER rating of B3.
  • We reserve the right to withdraw the Green Mortgage fixed interest rate at any time at our discretion. If we withdraw the Green Mortgage fixed interest rate before 30 June 2022, we will notify the public of this by putting an advertisement on our website and in at least one national newspaper.

The lender is Bank of Ireland Mortgages. Lending criteria and terms and conditions apply. A typical mortgage to buy your home of €100,000 over 20 years with 240 monthly instalments costs €615.79 per month at 4.2% variable (Annual Percentage Rate of Charge (APRC) 4.3%). APRC includes €150 valuation fee and mortgage charge of €175 paid to the Property Registration Authority. The total amount you pay is €148,114.60. We require property and life insurance. You mortgage your home to secure the loan. Maximum loan is generally 3.5 times gross annual income and 80% of the property value (90% of the property value for first-time buyers). A 1% interest rate rise would increase monthly repayments by €54.02 per month. The cost of your monthly repayments may increase – if you do not keep up your repayments you may lose your home. Available to over 18s only. Bank of Ireland Mortgage Bank is not responsible for information on third party websites.

Warning: If you do not keep up your repayments you may lose your home

Warning: You may have to pay charges if you pay-off a fixed-rate loan

Warning: If you do not meet the repayments on your loan, your account will go into arrears. This may affect your credit rating, which may limit your ability to access credit in the future

Bank of Ireland Mortgage Bank trading as Bank of Ireland Mortgages is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland.