Brussels, 30 May 2011 – For immediate release

2010 in figures – the publication of the EMF’s Quarterly Review for Q4 complete and complement the preceding quarters, bringing the EMF’s statistics on EU mortgage markets to their annual conclusion, and presenting us with an outlook for 2011. With in-depth commentary on the latest trends in mortgage and housing markets and a comprehensive set of quarterly data, year-end 2010 figures reveal that the trends already observed in Q1, Q2 and Q3 2010 are sustained.

Q4 2010 in a nutshell:

-       Stability – of most markets around levels below the pre-crisis peaks of 2007 and 2008, with no additional signs of a new mortgage recession in Europe as a whole

-       Resilience – of mortgage demand in general. New lending activity gained momentum in some of those countries that experienced the fastest GDP recovery in recent quarters whilst the decline in new year-on-year lending continued in other markets, albeit at a slower rate than previously observed

-       Fragility - in mortgage and housing market recoveries, which were both strongly interest-rate sensitive. The macroeconomic situation remained subdued in many countries, with weak GDP growth, high unemployment rates and accelerating inflation

-       Moderateness – observed in some rises in mortgage interest rates, mainly due to the expectation of a rise in ECB interest rates in the euro area, inflationary pressures, tensions on government bond markets and ongoing inter-bank funding problems. Levels of interest rates nonetheless remained very low

Also available online - download Q4 2010 at www.hypo.org.

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:

Avenue de Cortenbergh 71, B-1000 Brussels, Belgium

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

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