Now An Post has announced that savers can squirrel even more of their cash into these government-backed investments. The maximum investment in savings certs, which pay 16% interest over five and a half years, has been lifted from 80,000 to 120,000. The new threshold also applies to savings bonds, which pay 8% over three years.

The big attraction is that returns are tax free although, after paying top returns for long-term savings in recent years, the post office is losing its edge as interest rates rise.

For example, the best bank deposits from Anglo Irish Bank or RaboDirect pay about 3.75% interest, which works out at 3% after Dirt tax is deducted. This is more than tax-free savings certs, where the return works out at 2.74% a year.

To get this, you must lock up your money for the full five and half years whereas RaboDirect pays 3.7% on demand and Anglo pays 3.75% on 30-day deposits.

With more interest rate hikes on the way, it is difficult to see why savers would keep their money locked up in the post office, even if returns are tax free.

INVESTING WITH FOREIGN MORTAGES OVERSEAS property buyers who would rather not put their family homes on the line are increasingly getting their mortgages from foreign banks.

According to broker Foreign Mortgages, there has been a 100% increase in demand for foreign mortgages since the beginning of the year. By arranging the finance offshore, house hunters in the sun can keep their homes back in Ireland out of the equation.

"The mortgage will be secured against the foreign property, which means that your home or any other assets in Ireland are not at risk, " says managing director Harry Saul. "The local bank will also carry out due diligence checks on the property and on the contracts, providing peace of mind for your purchase.

Also, depending on the jurisdiction, mortgage interest may be offset against rental income."

Another advantage offshore is that you can borrow in the market currency you are investing in. So if you buy in Florida, you can borrow in dollars.

Borrowing for foreign banks is still relatively new and most of the millions of euro invested by Irish people in overseas property is financed by topping up the mortgages on their homes back in Ireland.

IRISH ARE CHRISTMAS BIG-SPENDERS WITH 35 shopping days left to Christmas, the experts are tracking our spending over the festive season.

Accountants Deloitte reckon the average household will spend more than 1,300, twice as much as European neighbours.

The Small Firms' Association has crunched the numbers differently, estimating that Christmas will cost us 4.25bn in total.

"As Christmas gets closer, spending becomes greater and on Christmas Eve the spend will be in excess of 23m an hour, " says SFA chairman Pat Crotty.

Deloitte also found that Irish shoppers tend to leave things until the last minute, with more than 60% of us splashing out in the last few days, hoping for some early bargains in January sales.

Our stamina is remarkable. Only households in Britain ( 1,057) and Spain ( 904) come close to matching Ireland's Christmas spending spree, which even exceeds the 1,299 that will be blown by the average American family.

"We are the most confident in Europe with the state of the economy and buying power, " says Cormac Hughes, consulting partner at Deloitte. "Just over 80% of consumers here are satisfied that the economy is stable, whereas in Germany, France, Spain and Portugal, high numbers of consumers surveyed are pessimistic. In addition, a majority of Irish households are optimistic about their financial position, with 50% expecting their position to improve next year."