Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

What the Minister of State left out from that list of figures is the affordable home equity stake the State acquires, which has to be paid back. I am not disputing that the figures given are the prices at the point of purchase but anybody who purchases one of those homes also has to repay the shared equity portion at a future point. They can do that either with a lump sum or on transfer or sale, and there is no interest. It would be much more honest if the Minister of State set out the purchase price and the all-in price. In many of these cases, the affordable housing fund element is significantly higher than what he has said. The worry is that in many areas, we are seeing purchase prices of €307,000 to €350,000 and affordable housing fund equity of €100,00, which will be a really big millstone around any family's neck. It would be much more appropriate to be honest about that.

It is likewise with cost rentals, with rent prices pushing up and up. One of the reasons the Land Development Agency will not borrow any money under its current mandate and is seeking additional ISIF and Exchequer funding is that if it starts to borrow, its cost rents will push up to €16,000, €17,000 and €18,000. A rent of €1,450, €1,500 or €1,550 a month is not affordable cost rental. It needs to be lower. The Minister of State must address the rising level of these rents because they are increasingly unaffordable for the very people for whom the cost-rental provision is meant.

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