The Mortgage Shop advertisement, airing tonight for the first time on UTV and Channel 4, is aimed at helping homeowners through the mortgage maze.

And the decision by the Mortgage Shop to advertise could mark a reversal of fortunes in the province's property market with first-time buyers snapping up cut-price houses from investors who outbid them previously, it has been claimed.

The humorous adverts, featuring animated characters, are aimed at reassuring buyers and homeowners alike who don't know their 'tracker from their capped' rate mortgages about the benefits of independent financial advice from The Mortgage Shop.

Siobhan McAleer, the firm's founder and managing director, said the all-Ireland campaign will also help clear up confusion about the current market.

" Equally, people are concerned over the sheer number of products in the mortgage marketplace and how these are tailored to individual needs given the serious financial commitment of a mortgage," she said.

Ms McAleer said the purpose of the TV campaign is to reassure the public as to the role of an independent mortgage broker, like The Mortgage Shop during a time of some uncertainty.

Homeowners could slash monthly repayments by hundreds of pounds, depending on the deal as The Mortgage Shop has access to up to 8,000 different mortgages, she said. "Homeowners could potentially save tens of thousands from their mortgages by remortgaging. While securing a mortgage is of crucial importance it doesn't have to be complicated," she added.

While some recent house price studies show falling values, figures from the Halifax House Price Index shows the province had the second largest increase in house price inflation in the UK - up 9.3% last year (2006-2007). There was, however, a quarterly drop of 1.7% at the end of last year, putting the average house price here at £216,255. Findings from all the surveys are set against a backdrop of the property price boom of 2006, and some industry sources have predicted house sales could rise in the next three months.

But the tide could be turning among buyers thanks to a combination of falling prices and interest rates. Ms McAleer explained: "First-time buyers could almost be smug now. They are in a position to negotiate with investors they were outbid by last year, the same investors who paid too much for property."

The Mortgage Shop enjoyed a flurry of activity from first-time buyers at the end of last year.

Ms McAleer said: "It is surprising. Our figures show we put through 75 applications for Co-Ownership in the last quarter of 2007 - a third of all our first-time buyers.

"The 25% drop in prices has allowed first-time buyers to consider Co-Ownership and this offers the best route onto the property ladder for first-time buyers.

"The first-time buyers who were turned off last year are being turned on again."

And there will not be a repeat of the property boom of two years ago. "I don't think there will be any big increases (house price growth) this year. Things will be fairly static," said Ms McAleer.