When the ‘Civil Partnership & Certain Rights and Obligations of Cohabitants Act 2010’ (Civil Partnership Act) was passed, it created the legal status of civil partnership for same-sex couples. This meant that the property and financial entitlements that previously only applied to married couples would now apply to registered civil partners. However the Act only…
Brexit uncertainty and Global corporation tax threaten a positive forecast for Ireland in 2018; Rising house prices create economic vulnerability as debt levels In the latest Friends First Economic Outlook ‘2018: Strong tail winds and some head winds’, published today Jim Power, chief economist at Friends First, forecasts full year GDP growth of 4.8% for 2017,…
Prices accelerating amid continuing supply shortfall AIB Treasury Economic Research Unit Sept 2017 Double-digit house price growth again After slowing to 5.5% in June 2016, annual house price inflation has been on a strong upward trend since then. The CSO data on residential property prices show that the pace of growth has quickened over recent…
Last night, the Taoiseach gave a speech to the employers’ group IBEC to announce an upcoming national pension plan that will look to start by 2021. In this speech he said: ‘Another priority is to ensure that more people in work make provision for decent pensions when they retire. This issue has been long-fingered…
First health insurer to cover Affidea Express Care centres and offer reduced rate for consultations Some great news for all Irish Life Health members From later this year Irish Life Health members will have access to treatment in the new Affidea Express Care Clinics at a reduced rate of €100, which is a 33%…
Three skinny lattes or €250,000 of cover? If you think you can’t afford Life and Serious Illness Cover, just think about cutting back on the odd skinny latte. From as little as €7 a week** you could safeguard your family’s future financially. Don’t delay, talk to Mullane Financial Services today! Call us on 061-469700 or…
In recent weeks, most of the meaningful action in the financial markets has been focused on currencies. The euro has very much become the darling of the markets and both the dollar and sterling are under some considerable pressure. At the end of 2016, the dollar reached a high of 1.0384 against the euro and looked set…
The latest mortgage drawdown data from the Banking & Payments Federation Ireland show that the mortgage market continues to recover, but there is still a long way to go to reach a ‘normal’ market in terms of mortgage numbers and value. Table 1 shows the volume or number of mortgages drawn down. In the first half of…
The Central Credit Register The purpose of this post is to inform you about the Central Credit Register, which is being set up by the Central Bank of Ireland under the Credit Reporting Act 2013. What is the Central Credit Register? The Central Credit Register is a national database that will, on request, provide: a…
Economic Outlook Jim Power, Chief Economist, Friends First June 2017 The global economy is in recovery mode The Irish Economy: Unleashing the upturn and unburdening the squeezed middle HIGHLIGHTS Real GDP could expand by 4.3% this year, which is up from a forecast of 3.3% at the beginning of the year Momentum evident in the…