Credit unions are on track to provide €150m or more in mortgage offers this financial year, marking an 18-fold increase in mortgage activity over the past six years.
Credit unions using the Credit Union Development Association's (CUDA) Mortgage Support Platform - SAM - have already loaned out more than €70m in the first half of the current financial year, which started on October 1.
This figure is expected to easily surpass €150m for the full year, up from €8.1m in 2018.
CUDA also said it believes that total new credit union mortgage lending could reach €1 billion a year by 2027.
Figures from credit unions today show that the average mortgage amount has increased by 70% since 2018, from €108,835 in 2018 to €185,474 in 2023 on an average property value of €341,700.
The average mortgage term has also increased from 18 years in 2018 to 23 years in 2023, while the average interest rate is 3.72%.
The Credit Union also noted that 35% of borrowers are individuals while the remaining 65% are couples.
Over 25 credit unions offer mortgages through the SAM mortgage platform and this number is consistently growing.
Kevin Johnson, CEO of CUDA, said the phenomenal growth in lending is driven by an increased appetite for credit union mortgages as well as the increased ability of credit unions to provide mortgages.
"The demand from members is clear, they want an alternative to the banks and credit unions are stepping up," Mr Johnson said.
He said that regulators have encouraged credit unions for several years to grow their lending and it is testament to the dedication of credit unions to upskill and bring much needed competition to the market.
"As the figures show, they are doing this in a prudent manner and growth in loans is reflective of their growth in capability," the CUDA CEO said.
"Legislators have also encouraged credit unions to increase their lending and, arising from the legislative changes signed last February, credit unions will be permitted to offer a service or product such as a home loan to a member of another credit union under a formal arrangement with that other credit union, in the last quarter of this year," he said.
"This effectively means that every credit union in the country will be able to offer mortgages," he added.
He also said that today's figures reflect a very fluid and developing market for credit unions.
"The last financial year was the first full year in which SAM credit unions have offered fixed rate mortgages, and they have quickly taken root representing almost one quarter of total mortgage lending on the platform," he noted.
"Although green mortgages accounted for 6.5% of total mortgage offers, this product is only emerging and currently only available from three credit unions on the platform. For those credit unions, green mortgages account for 35% of their total mortgage lending," he added.
CUDA believes that as a result of the new legislative changes, total new credit union mortgage lending could reach €1 billion a year by 2027, which could put credit unions in the top five mortgage lenders.
