Irish Mortgage Corporation
Dublin City Centre
- First-time buyer
- Switcher
- Investment
- Self-employed
The best Dublin mortgage brokers for investment and buy-to-let applicants in 2026, per Dublish's shortlist, are Irish Mortgage Corporation, GMC Mortgages, Mortgages.ie, Irish Mortgage Brokers, McCarney Financial Services, Pangea Mortgages Clondalkin, Clondalkin Mortgage Centre and Harbour View Mortgages Tallaght.
This shortlist is drawn from the Dublin brokers profiled on Dublish whose profile specialties include investment or buy-to-let. We ranked them by client rating multiplied by the natural log of review count, giving preference to brokers whose bios specifically describe experience with rental yield assessment, interest-only structuring, and limited-company landlord applications. All shortlisted brokers are authorised and regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland. Dublish is independent and is not paid by any broker on this list. Rankings are refreshed as new information becomes available.
Dublin City Centre
Why shortlisted: Dublin city centre brokerage with 4.9 stars across 310 reviews and a long track record advising investment clients through multiple interest-rate cycles. Particularly strong when a portfolio view, rather than a single purchase, is needed.
Clontarf, Dublin 3
Why shortlisted: A perfect 5.0-star rating across 210-plus reviews and 30 years in business. GMC handles investment cases alongside residential, meaning a landlord expanding a portfolio can run multiple applications through a single relationship.
Ballsbridge, Dublin 4
Why shortlisted: Ballsbridge-based (Finance Company of Ireland), 4.7 stars across 230 reviews, with an investment-and-self-employed specialty blend. A strong fit for Dublin 4, Dublin 6 and south-city investors who are often also company directors.
Dublin City Centre
Why shortlisted: Dublin city centre Irish Mortgage Brokers, 4.7 stars across 195 reviews. Their first-time buyer, switcher, investment and self-employed specialty combination is well suited to investors who are switching existing rental mortgages while adding a new property.
Clondalkin, Dublin 22
Why shortlisted: 4.9 stars across 140 reviews. Clondalkin is one of Dublin's most active rental markets, and Pangea's local office is attuned to the yield requirements that investment lenders apply to Dublin 22 stock specifically.
29 Whitworth Road, Drumcondra, Dublin 9
Why shortlisted: Drumcondra-based holistic adviser (4.8 stars, 120 reviews) whose specialty tags include investment, protection and pensions alongside residential. A natural choice for landlords whose investment property is part of a wider family-wealth plan.
Tallaght, Dublin 24
Why shortlisted: 4.8 stars, 115 reviews, and the only broker on this shortlist with an explicit buy-to-let specialty tag. Their Tallaght office is strong on rental yield stress tests for south-west Dublin investment stock.
Dolcan House, 80 Tower Road, Clondalkin, Dublin 22
Why shortlisted: 4.8 stars across 100 reviews with first-time buyer, mover, switcher and investment specialities. Well suited to west Dublin owner-occupiers who are purchasing their first buy-to-let alongside an upgrade to a new home.
Under Central Bank of Ireland mortgage measures, buy-to-let lending is capped at 70 per cent loan-to-value for most residential investment properties, meaning a minimum 30 per cent deposit. Lenders may apply stricter LTV limits for higher-risk stock or in certain postcodes. A broker can confirm which Irish lenders are currently active in buy-to-let and at what maximum LTV for your target property.
Lenders apply a rental cover or yield test, typically requiring projected gross rental income to cover between 120 per cent and 150 per cent of the stressed monthly mortgage payment. The stress rate is higher than the actual product rate — lenders are assessing resilience to future rate rises. Some lenders will also consider the applicant's PAYE or self-employed income as a top-up where rental cover alone is tight.
Yes, but availability is more limited than in the UK. A small number of Irish lenders offer interest-only buy-to-let products, typically for a fixed initial period of 3 to 5 years before reverting to capital-and-interest. Interest-only improves monthly cash flow and yield but leaves the full principal outstanding at the end of the term. A broker can advise whether interest-only is suitable given your exit strategy.
The choice is tax-driven and depends on your marginal income tax rate, whether you plan to hold the property long term, and whether you intend to reinvest rental profits. Personal ownership is simpler and accesses standard buy-to-let mortgages; company ownership can be tax-efficient for higher-rate investors but involves corporation tax on rental profits, close-company surcharges and tighter lender criteria. A broker will usually recommend a tax adviser be consulted alongside the mortgage application.
No. Help to Buy and the First Home Scheme are restricted to owner-occupier first-time buyers purchasing a principal private residence. Investment and buy-to-let purchases are not eligible for either scheme. A broker will make sure any State-backed support is correctly scoped to your intended use of the property to avoid later clawback or disqualification.
Yes. Buy-to-let switchers face the same break-fee, cashback and total-cost-of-credit calculations as residential switchers, though with a narrower set of active lenders and stricter LTV caps. Dublin buy-to-let switches often make sense when the property has appreciated and the current LTV has dropped into a lower-risk band, unlocking access to better rates. A broker will model the net saving before you commit.
Irish lenders apply their own affordability stress tests to investment applications — typically requiring that the borrower could still afford the mortgage at a rate 2 percentage points or more above the product rate. This sits alongside the Central Bank's statutory 70 per cent LTV cap for buy-to-let. A broker will calculate both the LTV position and the stressed affordability position before submitting the application.