Bank of Ireland mortgage subsidiary ICS Building Society has reported a 14.8 per cent increase in pretax profits for 2004.
The lender said pre-tax profits rose from €79.9 million in 2003 to €91.7 million last year.
It said new mortgage advances rose 20.6 per cent to €1.4 billion and that its mortgage book increased 24.1 per cent to €4.2 billion.
The building society said its deposit book increased by 11 per cent to €2.8 billion and its cost/income ratio improves by 2.3 per cent to 22.8 per cent.
ICS managing director Joe Larkin said: "The outlook for the mortgage market remains very positive and demand so far in 2005 has exceeded expectations. In the first two months of 2005, mortgage applications received were up over 20 per cent compared to the same period last year."
He said: "The housing market is very close to achieving supply/demand equilibrium in most locations, and we are still experiencing record activity in the market. This can be attributed to sustained economic growth, high employment levels and continuing low interest rates. I believe that although Irish property is expensive, it is still affordable."