The European Mortgage Federation has published the latest version of Hypostat, which provides detailed statistics and data on EU and international housing and mortgage markets, and is available for free download from the EMF’s website: www.hypo.org.   

In 2010, the size of the EU27 mortgage market, as measured by the outstanding volume of residential mortgages, grew by 4.9% to EUR 6.4 trillion, the largest expansion since the onset of the crisis. A higher growth rate in residential mortgage lending subsequently led to a 0.4% rise in aggregate EU27 residential mortgage lending to GDP ratio, resulting in 52.4% overall.

Commenting on the year’s trends, EMF’s Head of Statistics, Alessandro Sciamarelli, described how:

“A moderate albeit fragile recovery in the macroeconomic environment, coupled with mortgage interest rates down to record lows, provides the background for mortgage lending activity throughout 2010. Most new lending markets recorded increases compared to 2009, although remain far from pre-crisis figures with a levelling off observed in the second half of the year. The final picture has not changed drastically, remaining characteristically diverse across the EU.” 

The dramatic decline in residential construction activity slowed down in 2010, yet in spite of this moderation, volumes of activity remained well below pre-1998 levels. Notwithstanding the continued fall in building permits and housing starts, there is still excess supply in some EU countries which suggests that the correction is likely to continue.

House prices in 2010 followed three main trends:

- vigorous recovery in Austria, Sweden, France and the UK (albeit with a clear levelling off in   quarterly growth rates in Q3 and Q4 2010);

-  lower growth rates in Belgium, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg and Malta;

- continued house price recession in Cyprus, Ireland, Hungary, Spain.

Nominal house prices increased by 0.7% in the EU27 on average and a growth of 1.8% was recorded in the euro area.

Over the year, mortgage demand was stimulated by the continuous supportive monetary policy stance of the ECB and other central banks. In Q3, growing inflationary pressures and increasing tensions on some of the peripheral euro area sovereign debt markets led to monetary policy tightening, causing marginal increases in mortgage interest rates.

For a detailed, comprehensive set of data on all EU mortgage and housing markets, please download your copy of Hypostat 2010 from the website or contact the Secretariat at the address below.

Contact Persons:

Alessandro Sciamarelli

Tel: +32 2 285 40 42             

Head of Statistics

asciamarelli@hypo.org                       

Jane Gimber                                  

Tel: +32 2 285 40 33

Senior Communications Officer        

jgimber@hypo.org

For further information on the activities of the European Mortgage Federation please contact:

Tel. +32 2 285 40 30 - Fax +32 2 285 40 31

E-Mail: emfinfo@hypo.org - Website: www.hypo.org

Notes to the Editor:

Established in 1967, the European Mortgage Federation (EMF) is an international non-profit institution under Belgian Law (AISBL) representing the interests of mortgage lenders and covered bond issuers at European level. The EMF represents a growth industry worth EUR 6.4 trillion as at the end of 2010, which is approximately 52.4% of the EU’s GDP.

In 2004, the Federation established the European Covered Bond Council (ECBC), which represents covered bond stakeholders from Europe and around the world.

The Secretariat, a team of 13 people based in Brussels, co-ordinates the activities of the Federation and maintains contact with the European institutions.