Il 2023 was a turbulent year on the mortgage market: The monetary policy decisions taken by the ECB to counter the increase in inflation have increased interest rates, making mortgages more expensive. This increase has affected both fixed-rate and variable-rate loans. Now that inflation has subsided in an acceptable range, the high cost of mortgages seems like a distant memory and interest rates have returned to levels in line with historical data. Currently in Italy the APR on the mortgage is among the most convenient in the world: for compare mortgages online and get an idea of the offers available you can use the free comparator of MutuiOnline.it. The tool compares the solutions of several partner banks and helps to identify the best financing of the period.
How much do you pay for a mortgage in Italy today?
As we have already mentioned, Mortgage interest rates have fallen as a result of the recent cuts in the cost of money decided by the ECB, three during 2024 (and one possibly for next December).
Considering the best offers currently available on the MutuiOnline.it comparator, for a first home mortgage lasting 20 years requested by a 40 year old person and for an amount of 140.000 euros, to be used for the purchase of a house with a value of 200.000 euros, the most convenient rates are 3,1% for a fixed rate loan and 4,46% for a variable rate mortgage.
What is the mortgage situation in the rest of the world?
To understand if and how much Italian mortgages are convenient or not, it is useful to do a comparison with the current situation in other European countries and in the rest of the world.
Considering a loan with the same characteristics taken into consideration for Italy, MutuiOnline.it has discovered that the international situation is rather varied, but that our country is among those with the lowest rates.
For a fixed rate mortgage the country with the lowest costs is Switzerland, with the best rate equal to 1,8%, but a limit to the duration of 15 years. Among the EU countries, Italy is the one with the best APR: the Italian 3,1% is in fact more convenient than the 3,27% of the Spain, of 3,71% of the Germany, of 3,79% of the France and 3,87% of Netherlands. In other EU countries the cost of a fixed rate mortgage is much higher: in Belgium the APR starts from 4,3% and in Greece from 4,62%.
Even analyzing the situation of variable rate mortgages, the Italian market has some of the best conditions. Switzerland still excels, with a global interest rate starting at 2,08%. The EU country with the best conditions among those analyzed by MutuiOnline.it is Spain, which has an APR starting at 4,18%. Italy follows, with interests starting at 4,46%, while the best interest rate available in the Netherlands is close to 5% (4,97%).
Outside the EU the situation is affected by local monetary policy choices and the specificities of national markets. UK ha significantly higher rates to those registered in the Union, both for fixed-rate and variable-rate mortgages. The difference between the two options is minimal: the best fixed-rate mortgages have an APR of 5,4%, while for variable rates it rises to 5,6%.
In the United States, following the cut in the cost of money decided by the FED, the best mortgage rates start at 5,74% for fixed-rate loans and 6,77% for variable-rate loans.
For those who want to buy their first home, it would seem like a good time to ask for financing and take out a mortgage in Italy, thanks to falling rates and a stabilizing economic situation.
