EBS Mortgage Ultimate Review Ireland 2023

As Ireland’s only 100% dedicated mortgage lender an EBS Mortgage has always been a popular choice for Irish home buyers, but is an EBS mortgage good value? In our EBS Mortgage Ultimate Review – Ireland 2023 we give you the inside track on all things EBS mortgage and what your options and alternatives are.

EBS Mortgages

With EBS being owned by one of the Irish ‘pillar banks’ AIB getting an EBS mortgage has always felt like a safe mortgage option.

Digging a little deeper though EBS Mortgage rates right now are the highest in the market and there are better options for most people to choose.

As a lender that has to support a substantial branch network and expensive legacy tracker mortgages, EBS have some of the highest rates in the market, with only PTSB and BoI coming close to the lenders high mortgage rates.

In the introductory fixed rate period you will end up paying around 1.5% more than with some other lenders and after that period the difference is even larger with EBS charging rates of 3.7%-4.1% on their ‘follow on’ variable rates compared to 2.03%-2.25% with others.

EBS do offer more in cash back, a once off payment when the mortgage is drawn down, than most other lenders, but what they give in cash back is way less than what they take with the higher introductory and follow on interest rates.

The difference in interest rates might not seem that much at first, but it really mounts up over the course of a mortgage term.

Read on to get all the facts and figures on how much seemingly cash back offers really cost you and what better alternatives are available.

You can check out how an EBS mortgage compares to others using our calculator here.

Read on to find out if a EBS mortgage makes sense for you and the other options for a great rate and easy approval.

  1. BoI Mortgage Rate and Product Overview – EBS Mortgage Review Ireland 2023
  2. Pro’s & Con’s – EBS Mortgage Review Ireland 2023
  3. Recommendation – EBS Mortgage Review Ireland 2023
  4. Alternatives – EBS Mortgage Review Ireland 2023
  5. In a Nutshell – EBS Mortgage Review Ireland 2023

EBS Mortgage Rate and Product Overview – EBS Mortgage Review Ireland 2023

EBS Mortgage Product

EBS are selective about what they lend for.

  • They offer residential mortgages of more than €25,000 only, including first time buyers, home movers, buy to let and switchers.
  • EBS also offer staged payment self build mortgages.
  • They do not offer mortgages to people moving to Ireland from abroad.

They will also do top up mortgages for home improvements.

EBS Mortgage Approval Credit Policy

EBS has a reputation for being pretty flexible when it comes to their credit policy. The higher rates they charge seem to give their credit teams a bit more room to move than most. That said though, if you are have a more shaky or unusual credit history Finance Ireland are also a good option, without the gold plated price tag.

One thing to watch out for though is over recent years the time taken to approve a loan has extended to a couple of weeks a more, which can be a problem if you need your money in a hurry get hold of your dream home.

They will also allow you to borrow more than 3.5 times your income if you can show you have sufficient disposable income. These mortgages are known as ‘exceptions’ as they are exceptions to the Central Bank lending limits.

EBS Mortgage Rate

In the 3 year fixed rate mortgage comparison table below the EBS mortgage comes out in the worst 3, but unlike some of the other lenders they will give you 2% of your mortgage loan back when you draw down your loan as well as a further 1% after 5 years.

3 Year Fixed Mortgage Rate
APRC
up to
50% LTV
up to
60% LTV
up to
70% LTV
up to
80% LTV
up to
90% LTV
Avant Money Mortgage3.11%3.11%3.12%3.39%3.41%
ICS Mortgages4.90%4.90%4.92%5.15%5.18%
Finance Ireland Mortgage6.09%6.23%6.25%6.25%6.51%
Haven Mortgages3.50%3.50%3.50%3.50%3.50%
AIB Mortgage3.45%3.63%3.63%3.63%3.80%
EBS Mortgage4.10%4.10%4.10%4.10%4.10%
Permanent TSB Mortgage3.98%3.98%4.12%4.12%4.24%
Bank of Ireland Mortgage4.10%4.10%4.30%4.30%4.40%
Bank of Ireland Re-fix3.90%3.90%4.10%4.10%4.30%
KBC Mortgage3.70%3.70%3.90%3.90%4.10%
Correct as of 15/03/23

The Annual Percentage Rate Charge (APRC) represents the average rate across the lifetime of a typical mortgage and is recommended as the best rate to use for comparisons by the CCPC. [1] You can check out the APRC of all the mortgages currently on the market using our comparison tool here.

The reason the APRC, and therefore the cost of the mortgage, are so high for EBS isn’t in fact the cash back element, but the very high follow on rate after the introductory period as you can see in the table below.


Follow on/Variable Mortgage Rates
up to
50% LTV
Follow on Rate
up to
60% LTV
Follow on Rate
up to
70% LTV
Follow on Rate
up to
80% LTV
Follow on Rate
up to
90% LTV
Follow on Rate
Avant Mortgage2.95%2.95%2.95%3.30%3.30%
ICS Mortgages4.70%4.70%4.70%4.95%4.95%
Finance Ireland5.75%5.95%5.95%5.95%6.15%
Haven Mortgages2.75%2.95%2.95%2.95%3.15%
AIB Mortgage3.10%3.30%3.30%3.30%3.50%
KBC3.20%3.20%3.25%3.25%3.50%
Ulster Bank3.50%3.50%3.70%3.70%3.90%
EBS Mortgage3.30%3.50%3.50%3.50%3.70%
Permanent TSB3.70%3.70%3.70%3.70%3.90%
Bank of Ireland3.90%3.90%4.20%4.20%4.50%
Probable follow on variable rates post fixed period based on current variable rates by provider, rates updated 15/03/23

EBS Cash Back

So how does the cash back offer stack up against those super high interest rates?

Cash back can come in really handy to pay solicitor fees etc.. and the first few years after moving in are when you are often most hard pressed financially, so is often tempting. As you can see Bank of Ireland’s cash back option looks like the most generous in the market.

Compare
Cash back
Cash back MinCash back MaxCash back conditions
Avant Money€0€0NA
Haven€0€2,000Switcher only
AIB Mortgage€0€2,000Switcher only
Permanent TSB0%2%2% not available to 4 year fixed term.
EBS Mortgage2%3%2% on drawdown 1% after 5 years
Bank of Ireland2%3%2% on drawdown 1% after 5 years
Rates updated 15/03/23

In fact the whole cash back thing is a bit of a rip off in our view, so to be treated with care. A quick example might help illustrate why we think so.

If you take an average mortgage loan of €200,000 over 25 years, at a loan to value of 80% with a EBS 3 year fixed rate you will pay €1,066.75 on average per month, with Avant Money’s 3 year product that would be €870 a month, €196.75 a month cheaper.

So over 25 years that’s €58,940 less than with EBS in interest.

The cash back on the other hand is worth

  • 2% of the €200,000 = €4,000
  • 1% of the €200,000 after 5 years = €2,000
  • A total of 6,000

That’s over 52 grand more expensive, taking massive amounts of cash out of your pocket in repayments.

If you don’t need the cash back to cover legal fees etc.. then we would recommend the Avant Money, however if you do then Haven are the best of the rest. Based on current rates they offer a lot better value than EBS, Permanent TSB and Bank of Ireland which also offer cash back.

Pro’s & Con’s – EBS Mortgage Review Ireland 2023

Pro’s

  • The best cash back offering in the market

Con’s

  • Avant Money & ICS offer much better fixed rates
  • Follow on rates are the highest in the market and will cost you thousands

Recommendation – EBS Mortgage Review Ireland 2023

Due to the uncompetitive introductory and follow rates the only reason to get an EBS mortgage right now would be if you are considering switching multiple times to cash in on the cash back before switching out to avoid the super high follow on rates.

We don’t recommend this option though as we have covered in our switching article here.

If you need a cash back option to cover legal fees we would recommend Haven as their follow on rates are much lower. If you can afford to cover the legal fees yourself though, you are better off looking at Avant Money as the long term savings will out weigh the cash back saving pretty quickly.

If you can get a mortgage with Avant Money or Haven that’s a much smarter option than going with EBS.

You can a free mortgage check up to see what provider will suit you here.

Alternatives – EBS Mortgage Review Ireland 2023

Avant Logo
  • Rates from 2.44% APRC
  • Fixed for 3-30 Years
  • Tighter approval policy
ICS Logo
  • Rates from 3.83% APRC
  • Fixed for 3-5 Years
  • Flexible approval policy
Finance Ireland Logo
  • Rates from 4.45% APRC
  • Fixed for 3-25 Years
  • Flexible approval policy

In a Nutshell – EBS Mortgage Review Ireland 2023

EBS rely on customer inertia and their brand as a specialist mortgage provider to charge more than any other provider in the market.

Our recommendation is stay away, even if you are an existing customer and might be thinking better the devil you know, it’s not worth flushing thousands of Euro down the toilet in sky high interest payments.

If you can get a mortgage with Avant Money, ICS or Finance Ireland that’s a much smarter option than going with Bank of Ireland.

Avant Money, ICS Mortgages and Finance Ireland are available through brokers or through one our mortgage sherpas.

Next Steps – EBS Mortgage Review Ireland 2023

If you want to see what you could save by calculating your repayments and see all mortgage provider rates you can click here.

If you want to know more about other mortgage providers you can click here.

If you want to know more about long term fixed rate mortgages you can read our article here.

If you want to get your savings started right now, set up a free no obligation video call with a mortgage sherpa here.

Check out our other popular guides below.

Daire McConnon - mortgage sherpa lead

Need help with your mortgage?

No hassle, in a 15 minute call our mortgage sherpa team will guide you on the journey. 

They will help you borrow, find you the best deal and make the paperwork painless.

Best of all, they are free as they are paid for by the lenders.

Why Us?

Save €25,000 On Average

Start Saving in 6 Weeks

100% Free

100% On Line

Check out our reviews

Suzanne Powell
Suzanne Powell
14/03/2023
Lovely to deal with. Sound, honest, unbiased advice with no pressure. They'll tell you what is genuinely best for you. Would highly recommend.
Lee Palmer
Lee Palmer
09/03/2023
Great service. Highly recommended. Couldn't speak more highly of Gavin and team for making the whole experience as seamless as possible. Thanks all who were involved.
Eve Quigley
Eve Quigley
26/02/2023
Cost of living challenges, seeing prices increase daily on everything from utilities, basic essentials and services made me re-evaluate my outgoings and where savings could be had. That included my mortgage, every article I read recommended reaching out to a mortgage expert. I have no regrets in contacting Moneysherpa, I contacted three experts and only they responded. Having delved into the world of mortgages, done my own research I knew my best option would be to stay with my present provider and fix my rate, they concurred and by doing so ultimately wouldn't have made a financial gain on my ask but were still willing to share their invaluable expertise with me and that counts for a lot. They were professional, knowledgeable and offered me sound advice. I have since recommended to family/friends. Thank you Nikki and your team, I appreciate your time and words of wisdom. Best wishes to you and your company.
David O'Shea
David O'Shea
17/02/2023
Daire and the team helped me with a recent mortgage switch. Fantastic service from my first call with Daire through to completion. If you are thinking about switching mortgage then the first thing you should do is contact these guys. I am so glad I did!!
Julie Gleeson
Julie Gleeson
03/02/2023
I was delighted with the service I received from the moneysherpa team. So efficient, friendly and on point with everything. Highly recommended them.
James Grace
James Grace
02/02/2023
I used Moneysherpa when switching my mortgage provider at the end of 2022. Petrina was very helpful when detailing the different options available and working through the process. The online platform for uploading all the various documentation is very user friendly and clearly lists out what is uploaded and still outstanding. Louise then took over for the drawdown stage and answered any questions we had. I would definitely recommend Petrina and the team to anyone planning on switching their mortgage.
Gary Meade
Gary Meade
25/01/2023
Great to see a “modern” mortgage service in Ireland. Everyone knows a mortgage application can be extremely time consuming and document heavy but with everything being “online” made such a difference. Highly recommend Petrina from discussing our options from the outset and any curve balls that came our way during the process. Damian (jacobs law) and Niki in Money Sherpa. Highly recommend. Thanks everyone
Dara Gannon
Dara Gannon
16/01/2023
Had a very informative consultation with Kinga who answered all our questions and gave us sound and impartial advice. Top class service. Thanks!
Brian Carpenter
Brian Carpenter
20/12/2022
Great service...a pleasure to deal with & very prompt with responses to any queries. Would recommend to anyone.
Edwin Nienhuis
Edwin Nienhuis
20/12/2022
Very good service by the MoneySherpa team in helping us switch our mortgage earlier in the year. First an introduction call, explaining the service and next steps in detail followed by the creation of a personalised portal where you can upload all your documents and track the mortgage application process.

Get your FREE mortgage switching guide

Save big with our 26 page downloadable switching guide & tips straight to your inbox

Book your free mortgage check

Hours
Minutes
Seconds

HURRY BEFORE THEY ARE GONE: Secure your FREE 15 min online video advice call NOW

Get Your Free
Mortgage Switching Guide!

Save big with our 26 page Ultimate Switching Guide and tips straight to your inbox