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

I thank the Deputy for raising this. The help to buy scheme is a plan to assist first time purchasers with the deposit if they need to buy or build a new house of apartment. It also has as an aim to encourage additional supply of new homes by supporting demand. The Deputy knows what the help to buy scheme is so I will not go into the detail of it.

The scheme has supported almost 55,000 individuals or couples. The estimated value of it has been €1.2 billion and the scheme has now been extended until 2030. It is reviewed in accordance with the Department of Finance’s tax expenditure guidelines on a regular basis and any revision to the scheme would have to be considered as part of the annual budget and finance Bill process. I look forward to hearing the Deputy's view on the scheme.

I reiterate my thinking on the future of the scheme. I do not believe the scheme should be extended to second hand homes. I appreciate this can sometimes be a difficult argument to make but a criticism and risk of a scheme like this is that we have to avoid adding to the cost of new homes being purchased by home purchasers. There is a risk that if the scheme was made available for homes that have already been built the money we are making available at the moment would simply go into making the homes more expensive as opposed to what I believe it does overall, which is to help with the supply of homes within a certain price bracket. Beyond that, I look forward to hearing the Deputy's views on the future of the scheme.

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