What you can borrow, and the fifteen per cent that breaks the rule
Four times income for a first time buyer, three and a half for everybody else, ten per cent deposit. Banks may lend above those limits on a share of their book.
The Central Bank sets two limits. One is on the size of the loan against your income, the other on the size of the loan against the price of the house. Both apply, so the smaller of the two answers is what you can borrow.
- First time buyer, against income
- 4 times gross
- Second and subsequent, against income
- 3.5 times gross
- Deposit, either way
- At least 10%
The first time buyer figure moved from 3.5 to 4 in 2023 and the older number is still repeated constantly, including by people who should know. It is worth a couple of hundred thousand on a joint application.
The allowance is not a loophole
A lender may write fifteen per cent of its first time buyer lending above the limits, and the same share of its second and subsequent lending. That is a quota held by the bank, not an entitlement held by you. It tends to be given to applicants the bank likes most, it runs out as the year goes on, and asking in November is a worse bet than asking in February.
Gross income means gross
- Base salary before tax. Guaranteed regular allowances are usually counted, variable income partly or not at all.
- Bonus and commission are treated cautiously and differently by each lender, which is the main reason two banks give the same couple different answers.
- Existing loans do not reduce the multiple directly, they reduce what the affordability assessment leaves you, which often bites first.
The deposit is not the only cash you need
On a €400,000 second hand house the deposit is €40,000, Stamp Duty is €4,000, and legal fees, a survey and a valuation come on top of that. None of it can be borrowed. The total to have in the bank is meaningfully more than ten per cent, and it is the part that most often delays a purchase rather than the mortgage itself.
Sources
- Loan to income limit, first time buyers, Central Bank of Ireland
- Loan to income limit, second and subsequent buyers, Central Bank of Ireland
- Minimum deposit as a share of the price, Central Bank of Ireland
- Share of lending permitted above the limits, Central Bank of Ireland
Questions people ask
- How much can a first time buyer borrow in Ireland?
- Four times gross income, subject to a deposit of at least ten per cent. The figure moved from three and a half to four in 2023 and the older number is still widely repeated, including by people who ought to know.
- What is the difference between the income limit and the deposit limit?
- They are two separate tests and both apply, so whichever gives the smaller loan is the one that decides. A large deposit does not let you exceed the income multiple, and a high income does not let you buy with less than ten per cent down.
- Can a bank lend me more than four times my income?
- Sometimes. Lenders may write fifteen per cent of their first time buyer lending above the limits. It is a quota held by the bank rather than an entitlement held by you, it tends to go to the applicants a bank likes most, and it runs out as the year goes on.
- Does bonus or commission count towards what I can borrow?
- Partly, and every lender treats it differently. That is the main reason two banks give the same couple materially different answers on the same day.
- How much cash do I need beyond the deposit?
- On a €400,000 second hand house, €4,000 of Stamp Duty plus legal fees, a survey and a valuation. None of it can be borrowed, and it is more often the thing that delays a purchase than the mortgage itself.
Figures checked 8 August 2026.