Dáil debates
Thursday, 15 June 2023
Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate
Rental Sector
2:05 pm
Dessie Ellis (Dublin North West, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source
The tenant purchase scheme has been a very effective way for people to purchase their property from local authorities. There have been a number of changes to the scheme and the most recent in February 2022 included that a tenant has to have ten years' tenancy and meet the criteria to qualify on their own for a loan. The problem arises where a person has ten years or more tenancy and gets married. Their partner also has to have ten years to qualify for the scheme. Previously, if a couple got married this rule only applied for a short period. I think it was about a year. In the case I have in mind, a couple had applied in 2021 to purchase their homes but, unfortunately, did not submit enough documents and were not on time.
The new scheme has since kicked in, having started in February 2022. It seems that the primary tenant is being penalised because she got married or is living with a partner or otherwise. They will now have to wait, and in some cases, people will be left waiting for up to ten years or more to purchase their home. The primary tenant is getting older and may not qualify for a loan due to age. That may add up to ten years to her tenancy without the option to purchase, despite having the funds to do so. It seems unfair. This ten-year rule does not make sense. It appears only to penalise the main tenant.
This rule seems to be the effect of a ministerial order and its effect has been to penalise couples living together, causing long delays. Will the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage look at this issue? It is unfair and I call on the Minister to review the scheme and engage with the local authorities, or whoever else needs to be engaged with. I ask him to review the scheme because it does not seem right.
Another issue relates to tenants whose houses were adapted by the local authorities. Those tenants cannot purchase their homes even though they may have spent ten or 20 years living in the home with people with disabilities. It seems as if people with disabilities who qualify for and can get the necessary loans are being discriminated against. It appears that way. I know many local authorities looked at this scheme and had various reasons they did not want to sell off adapted tenancies. People with disabilities have rights under the United Nations Convention on Persons with Disabilities, UNCRPD. If people are living in a home they want to purchase in circumstances where a young person or the tenant in question has an illness, they should not be excluded. The situation should be reviewed by the Minister. He should consider whether a new scheme could be put in place. It seems there is discrimination. There is a blanket refusal across all the local authorities to sell off adapted houses. That does not seem right. There might be cases in which it could be argued that such houses should not be sold off but circumstances in which a person qualifies and has a genuine case should be considered.
2:15 pm
Anne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source
I thank the Deputy for tabling this Topical Issue, which I am taking on behalf of the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage. The tenant (incremental) purchase scheme was introduced in January 2016 and is open to eligible tenants, including joint tenants, of local authority houses which are available for sale under the scheme. To be eligible, applicants must meet certain criteria, including minimum annual reckonable income and minimum time in receipt of social housing supports.
Both the programme for Government and Housing for All commit to maintaining the right of social housing tenants to purchase their home, subject to a number of reforms. As such, the scheme was reviewed in 2021 in line with these commitments. On foot of this review, the Government approved a number of amendments which came into effect on 1 February 2022 by way of the Housing (Sale of Local Authority Houses) (Amendment) Regulations 2021. One of the amendments included changing the time a tenant, including a joint tenant, must be in receipt of social housing supports in order to qualify for the scheme. This was increased from one year to ten years and now both tenants must meet this requirement. This ten-year social housing support requirement includes time spent living in social dwellings provided by local authorities or approved housing bodies, as well as assistance provided through the housing assistance payment and the rental accommodation scheme. These changes were introduced to strike an appropriate balance between increasing the scope for those in receipt of long-term housing support to purchase their local authority home and ensuring the continued sustainability of the scheme by not unduly diminishing local authority housing stock.
Importantly, this amendment seeks to further support the development of socially sustainable communities, which is a fundamental principle of the tenant purchase scheme. The scheme is intended to facilitate social mobility and to strengthen social integration through the creation of mixed tenure communities, which is a key tenet of the Government’s housing policy. Tenants who become the owners of their homes can inspire others to follow along the same path and this positive example strengthens communities. For the tenants themselves, the move to homeownership can be transformative and empowering, reducing dependency and increasing independence. Tenants availing of the scheme are now fully responsible for their own home and can make improvements and add value as they please.
Other amendments introduced include changing the minimum reckonable income required to qualify under the scheme, reducing it from €15,000 to €12,500 per annum, and also including the State contributory or non-contributory pension as reckonable income. This has enabled lower income earners and those whose only income is the State pension to become eligible to purchase their home under the scheme.
Schemes such as these are regularly reviewed to ensure they are effective and sustainable, and offer the best value for tenants as well as for local authorities. To that end, further changes to the scheme are currently being considered as part of the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage’s work on the broader social housing reform agenda. This includes considering the impact of the ten-year social housing support requirement for both tenants, as well as revisiting what is considered to be reckonable income under the scheme.
Dessie Ellis (Dublin North West, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source
I thank the Minister of State for her reply. I am glad to hear that further changes are envisioned. In all honesty, when you think about it, a ten-year rule for someone who has been in a council house for ten, 15 or 20 years, who gets married and is then confined to hanging on for up to ten years, does not make sense. I hope that is reconsidered. We must get an appropriate balance, as the Minister of State mentioned. The situation as it stands is not balanced. It is unfair.
The scheme was introduced in 2022 and it has been fabulous for some people, including my wife and I, who purchased our own house. It has been a fabulous scheme and I have no problem with it in general, except for this issue which has been brought to my attention. I also raised the issue in respect of people with disabilities. I know why the local authorities and councillors, in many cases, have been opposed to selling off stock. In general, I accept that. However, in the interests of fairness, just because someone has a disability and a house that has been adapted should not mean he or she is treated any differently from anyone else. That is my opinion. As part of the review, I would like the Minister to consider the situation. An allowance should be made where there is a genuine case to be looked at.
Anne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source
I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. The requirement for a tenant or joint tenants to have been in receipt of social housing support for ten years in order to be eligible to purchase their home under the scheme has a number of benefits. It strikes an appropriate balance between the right of social housing tenants to purchase their homes and the ability of the local authority to replenish its housing stock. It supports the development of socially sustainable communities. However, as I have outlined, the Department is currently considering the impact of the ten-year social housing support requirement for both tenants, along with other aspects of the scheme, and the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage will consider whether the actions are appropriate on foot of the review.
I take on board what the Deputy has said about the disability housing stock. I totally understand what he is saying. Disabled people should have equal access and equal rights to be able to purchase a home, no different from anybody else.
Dessie Ellis (Dublin North West, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source
That is required under the UNCRPD.
Anne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source
It absolutely is. I am off-script now and am not reading the Minister's reply, to be clear. Unfortunately, we do not have enough universal design+ or universal design++ coming through the local authorities to be able to support people in independent living. That must be a focus as we are building not only social and affordable housing. We need to be able to build a suite that encompasses all in society and allows them to access their own properties. I know the Deputy believes in that, as does the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien. That is something I look forward to taking forward.