Dáil debates

Wednesday, 1 May 2013

Other Questions

House Purchase Schemes

2:35 pm

Photo of Richard Boyd BarrettRichard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

Will the Minister of State explain why there is a time lag? The tenant purchase scheme, which operated from 1995 until December of last year, was quite successful. It provided reasonable discounts for local authority tenants who wanted to purchase their own homes. The Minister of State was very vague regarding the context of when a new scheme will be established and she also did not indicate why there is a time lag between the end of the old scheme and the establishment of a new one. I am sure she is aware that many council tenants wish to purchase the homes in which they live. Obtaining council homes often acts as a stepping stone for those on lower incomes to eventually purchase their own homes. There is no good reason for the time lag to which I refer. Will the Minister of State clarify why it exists and will she be more specific as to when the relevant legislation will be brought forward and when the new scheme will be established?

I have been contacted about this matter by many people who live in the city. I stress that I am of the view that all of the moneys relating to any new scheme should be ring-fenced in order to provide new social housing. It should not be a case of running down the stock of social housing. If anything we desperately need a new social housing programme, particularly as the waiting time relating to some housing lists is now 12 years. Will the Minister of State answer the questions I have posed and indicate whether a new social housing programme designed to deal with the unsustainable waiting lists to which I refer will be put in place?

Comments

Car. H.
Posted on 1 Oct 2013 1:57 am (Report this comment)

I have been writing & emailing the housing department for years & years now. No matter what I have approached the council with I feel that I am always met faced with a wall. The latest disappointment is my/our recent application to buy our council dwelling which was turned down. We were refused a mortgage because I ( in the past had a poor credit rating - I was a single parent for 13 years & although I have always worked full time it was never enough to make ends meet hence I could only survive on borrowing, sometimes I was late making payments BUT every loan I ever borrowed always got fully paid back ). Hoping that all was not lost I knew we still had the council tenant purchase loan to fall back on - having had 2 refusals from the banks was enough we thought to be eligible for a council mortgage. The amount we were looking for was 103,000 ... a small amount in the grand scheme of things considering the amount of people NOT having to pay their huge hefty 400,000 mortgages because of their now financial difficulties all seems so unfair. We want to own our house, we are in a strong position to be able to pay a mortgage of this amount, at the moment we are paying more weekly for rent than we would if we were paying back a mortgage.
Can you help me appeal the decision to close my file / application to buy my council dwelling ...... I would like to have the discount awarded to me for being a council tenant for 20 years held open until I have obtained a mortgage or form of payment to allow me to buy my home. I do not want it to be closed, I want to appeal it & I want to appeal the decision to not give me a tenant house purchase loan too.

Could you please answer the following queries ....

1) I would like all the information on what other schemes are being offered that will allow me to buy my house.
2) I would also like to make alterations to my house, & I would like to extend ( at my own expense of course ) BUT I am obviously not going to extend for someone else's benefit as I am sure you would understand.

4) When is the incremental purchase scheme going to commence & what houses will be available ??? I think it is so unfair of the government to take away my opportunity to buy my home after 19 years of living in it ... because I do not own it I cannot extend, make alterations, etc...
we really want to buy our home ... make it our own OR
eventually sell & buy somewhere else.

If we could buy our house we could have a chance to move..... we may never move from it even if we do buy it BUT we want the same chance as everyone else. I would be grateful if you could give me every bit of information you have on every single means or ways that a tenant can buy their home.... ACTUALLY ANY SCHEME available to tenants that allows them to build on their council house, rent to buy, self build, sustainable homes, council land for sale to self build, eco homes, Many thanks
C.

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