Brian Stanley (Laois-Offaly, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The agency has set out a number of measures to deal with the issue of shared ownership loans, including extending the current mortgage loan term, allowing interest-only repayments and allowing interest-only repayments for partial redemption. Are these measures sufficient given that exactly one year ago, 38.9% of shared ownership loans were in arrears of 90 days or more? These figures, however accurate, were provided by the Department in response to a parliamentary question.

Some of the houses on which shared ownership loans were taken out have been abandoned as owners have decided to shut up shop, as it were, and move on. Local authorities would like to transfer some of these vacant properties to their housing stock and some have already done so. I understand that in the case of at least one local authority the Housing Finance Agency receives the rent and uses it to service the loan. Does the agency intend to act to ensure houses are not left abandoned for extended periods?

The Housing Finance Agency has been a progressive and good body. However, having provided finance to house a large number of people, it now has loans outstanding on its borrowings as a result of a hangover from the Celtic tiger era. The assets of the agency and local authorities - the houses for which the loans were borrowed - are being left idle and their conditions are deteriorating as a result of vandalism, freezing pipes and so forth. In addition, boarded up houses have a negative impact on the image of neighbourhoods. Can something be done to fast-track the sale of such houses or their transfer into local authority housing stock? Are the steps set out by the agency sufficient? Should it offer a rental option when there is no hope of a loan being repaid? I am aware of borrowers whose incomes have collapsed to perhaps one quarter of the level they were at when their loans were taken out. They may be able to pay €50 per week but they cannot pay €200 per week.

Will the witnesses provide a ballpark figure on the percentage of loans taken out under the affordable housing scheme that are in arrears? Is the agency extending loans to local authorities for the purposes of refurbishing, maintaining and repairing existing housing stock?

I was interested to note that a large part of the Housing Finance Agency's loan book is for environmental projects in areas such as water and waste. Will the witnesses provide some examples?