Repayments on household loans exceeded new lending by €291m during May, according to the Central Bank, largely due to a decline in loans for house purchases.
Loans for consumption and other purchases were also down in the month, which follows a similar decline during April.
In the year to May outstanding household loans had fallen by 2.9%, according to the Central Bank, with repayments exceeding new drawdowns by around €2.84 billion.
Loans for house purchases – which make up 82% of all household loans - were down 2.5%, with repayments exceeding drawdowns by €2bn during the year.
Meanwhile loans for consumption and other purchases fell 4.3%, with repayments exceeding drawdowns by €844m.
During May there was also a €262m increase in the level of deposits held by households, with that figure rising by €1.5bn over the previous twelve months.
The Central Bank said households have continued to favour short-term deposit accounts, with overnight deposits rising by 12.4% in the year to May and deposits with agreed maturity dates showing an annual decline.
