Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Independent)
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53. To ask the Minister for Finance further to Parliamentary Question No. 252 of 20 January 2015, if he will provide a breakdown of the 5,000 units referred to in the second paragraph of his reply in terms of the numbers that are let for social housing, reserved for social housing, and available on the open market. [4147/15]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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I will expand upon my answer to Parliamentary Question No. 252 of 20 January 2015.

I am advised by NAMA that of the approximately 14,000 completed residential units currently within the Agency's portfolio, approximately 9,000 are rented in the private rental market.  The remaining 5,000 are either (a) let or reserved for social housing or (b) are available on the open market through professional agents appointed by NAMA debtors and receivers to either rent or buy.

Of the 5,000 units, approximately 600 residential properties are currently leased by NAMA debtors and receivers or directly by its social housing SPV, NARPS, to local authorities and approved housing bodies for social housing.  

An additional 1,200 residential properties are reserved for social housing.  These are properties for which local authorities have confirmed demand and which are currently in the contractual process for purchase or lease for social hosing.  

The remaining 3,200 completed available properties are currently on the market through NAMA debtors or receivers for sale or rent.  A substantial proportion of these properties are managed as part of NAMA's portfolio of smaller debtor connections and many of them are located in rural areas and towns where demand remains constrained.  The Deputy may wish to note, in this regard, that many of these properties were originally made available by NAMA to local authorities for social housing but were ultimately deemed unsuitable by local authorities based on criteria such as their location and on wider planning and housing policy considerations.

For the Deputy's information, NAMA has to date made over 5,700 houses and apartments available for social housing.  Local authorities, through the auspices of the Housing Agency, have confirmed demand for just over 2,200 of these properties, of which 1,068 have already been delivered through a combination of purchase and long-term leasing arrangements for social housing. This includes the 600 units referred to above which are currently leased for social housing. Further detail on this initiative is available on the NAMA website, .