€8bn lined up for foreign property In IRELAND - SSIA - SSIA investment

Irish property speculators are planning to spend almost €8bn on foreign property this year, according to a report in the Irish Independent.
Interest in foreign property has jumped 25% according to various sources quoted in the article - largely due to SSIA payouts.

SSIA - A Brief History

Special Savings Incentive Accounts (SSIAs) were introduced back in 2001 to encourage everyone in Ireland, who was over 18 at the time, to start saving.

The basic idea was that you could save as little as €12.50 (IR£10) per month or as much as €254 (IR£200) per month and the Government would pay a 25% bonus on the amount saved each month. The financial institution would also pay their rate of interest on deposits. These combined rates represented a must for all potential savers.

The scheme was available from 1st May 2001 until 30th April 2002 giving savers 12 months in which to open their SSIA. The majority of accounts were opened towards the end of this period, many on the very last day.

Savings were to be left in place for 5 years, until the final maturity date.

By the time the scheme closed, around 1.1 million people had opened SSIAs meaning that between 31st May 2006 and 30th April 2007 hundreds of thousands of Irish people are facing an unprecedented windfall.

SSIA investment Guide

Please click here To download a PDF copy of the "Your SSIA Guide" supplement to the Sunday Independent 28th November 2005 .