Seán Kenny (Dublin North East, Labour)
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Question 139: To ask the Minister for Social Protection if she will review the practice of refusing to accept rent allowance payment from a person who wishes to rent a property where the property owner is a shared ownership purchaser who themselves were compelled to rent elsewhere due to family circumstances. [35300/11]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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The community welfare service (CWS) and the community welfare officers providing it transferred formally to the Department of Social Protection (DSP) from 1 October 2011. The service and the staff are now part of the DSP.

Shared Ownership is a scheme which was aimed at people who could not afford to purchase their home at the initial stage. The applicant acquires a minimum share of 40% of the cost of the house and pays rent to the local authority for the remainder called the Council's Equity. Ownership of the property is shared by the local authority and the applicant. The applicant pays a mortgage on their share of the property and also pays rent to the local authority for the other part. In general the granting of a shared ownership lease requires the applicant not to assign, sub-let or otherwise part with or share possession of the property or any part thereof without the prior consent in writing of the local authority.

I understand from the question that the shared owner in this case wishes to rent out the house to a rent supplement supported tenant and pass this money onto the local authority in the form of the shared owner's rental payment under the terms of the shared ownership scheme. This would not be an appropriate use of public monies given that one of the conditions of the rent supplement scheme is that it is not payable to a housing authority which is what is effectively being proposed in this case.