Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)

I accept that the rise in house prices in recent years has caused difficulty for some people in a certain income bracket. This is the reason the Government introduced a number of targeted measures to provide affordable houses for this group, an objective we are achieving. A couple of thousand affordable houses are built each year and we expect the figure to increase to approximately 12,000 over the next three years.

Other measures have also been taken. In the previous budget, for example, the Government removed the requirement for first-time buyers of second hand houses to pay stamp duty, an effective measure which benefited many of those to whom the Deputy referred by as much as €12,000.

First-time buyers are still buying a large number of houses. Figures for last year indicate that people who previously lived at home or in rented accommodation now buying their first homes took out approximately 40% of mortgages. This is a significant proportion of house buyers. The problem many first-time buyers currently face is obtaining an initial deposit rather than a mortgage. I am not trying to say price does not count — it does — but if one compares affordability, that is, the percentage of take home pay required to service a mortgage, one finds that people paid a greater proportion of their take home pay to service their mortgages ten or 15 years ago than they do now. The Government is conscious, however, that the position has worsened since the mid-1990s and is trying to help those in a certain income bracket who need help. The four schemes and the stamp duty reduction we introduced all help such people. As I stated, the main problem is often finding the initial deposit.

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