Consumer alarm: ‘the new ECB hike is a blow to families’

‘The 25 basis point increase in interest rates decided today by the ECB represents an average blow of +20 euros per installment for Italian families who have taken out variable rate mortgages’.

This was stated by the Italian Codacons, the consumer association which provides estimates on the effects of the ECB’s decision on the pockets of Italians in a market, that of mortgages, which is worth 426 billion euros in Italy.

It will be necessary to wait for the next few weeks to understand how the market will respond to the rise in interest rates - explains Codacons - In recent days, the Euribor, the reference index for variable rate mortgages, has stood at around 3.33% for the 1-month one, 3.52% at three months: if the increase decided by the ECB were to be transferred entirely to the market, the Euribor would rise to 3.58% (at one month), 3.77% at three months.

Considering an average range of variable-rate mortgages for an amount between 125,000 and 150,000 euros for a duration of 25 years, i.e., the amount most requested in Italy by those who take out a loan for the purchase of a house, the monthly installment is therefore destined to rise between 15 and 25 euros as a result of today’s decision by the ECB - analyzes Codacons - However, if we consider all the increases imposed by the European Central Bank since last year, the monthly installment of a variable rate mortgage it will rise overall between 240 and 320 euros compared to what was paid in 2021, with repercussions on families between +2,880 and + 3,840 euros per year.