The sharp decline in the performance of international property markets has been central to the financial distress experienced globally. The Irish housing market experienced particularly strong rates of price increases and heightened activity levels by OECD standards. One reason cited for such large price increases has been the significant degree of financial liberalisation experienced by Irish credit institutions. The culmination ofmuch of this liberalisation resulted in large increases in the availability of mortgage credit. In this paper we apply a recently developed model of mortgage credit and examine the implications for Irish house prices of changes in lending patterns. Our results suggest that post 2003, a significant amount of the increase in Irish prices was determined by innovative developments in international finance, which enabled Irish institutions, in particular, to secure alternative sources of lending funds.
