Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The housing needs of over 25,000 of our people will be met this year alone and by the end of 2018, over 70,000 housing solutions will have been delivered under the Rebuilding Ireland programme. Of these, just under 12,000 will be delivered through building, over 5,000 through acquisitions and 3,600 through leasing. A further 49,700 have been delivered through the housing assistance payment and the rental accommodation scheme.

More new homes will be provided this year than in any year in the past decade. To support a continued increase in supply, the Land Development Agency, LDA, has been established to better co-ordinate State lands for regeneration and development. The Government has already identified a number of sites through which the LDA can deliver approximately 3,000 homes and we are in discussions with various State bodies regarding land that could deliver another 7,000 homes.

Social and Affordable Housing

I am allocating €1.25 billion for the delivery of 10,000 new social homes in 2019. These will be delivered through a combination of construction, acquisition and leasing and will bring to 30,700 the number of new social housing homes provided under Rebuilding Ireland since 2016.

I am also allocating an extra €121 million for the housing assistance payment in 2019 to provide an additional 16,760 tenancies next year. This support is providing a critical exit mechanism for families and individuals in emergency accommodation or at risk of homelessness.

Recognising the challenges of our citizens faced with homelessness, I am allocating €60 million extra in capital funding for this year, much of which will fund additional emergency accommodation so that no one has to sleep rough this winter and for additional family hubs.

Added to this, €30 million is being provided next year for homelessness services, bringing the total allocation for such supports to €146 million in 2019.

Affordability

The affordability of housing remains a priority and I continue to work with my colleagues in government and the main Opposition party on this matter. We have established a €100 million serviced sites fund to support local authorities in bringing forward lands for subsidised, more affordable housing. I intend to increase the level of this fund to €310 million over three years. In 2019 alone, I am increasing the planned funding from €20 million to €89 million, which will bring the planned investment to over €100 million next year. This will facilitate the delivery of approximately 6,000 affordable homes over the lifetime of the fund.

The infrastructural funding available per subsidised home is also being increased from €40,000 up to a maximum of €50,000, supporting the delivery of homes at up to 40% below market prices. Funding for the first sites will be announced later this month.

Income eligibility limits of €50,000 for a single applicant and €75,000 for dual applicant households will apply and these will be kept under regular review to ensure they remain appropriate.

Rental Sector

In the rental sector, I am bringing forward the full removal of the restriction on the amount of interest that may be deducted by landlords in respect of loans used to purchase, improve or repair their residential property.

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