Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Sinn Fein)
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270. To ask the Minister for Finance the residential properties and development land in the ownership of the banks, of which the State is a shareholder; if he will detail the availability of both categories by county; the steps taken to use these assets to alleviate the housing emergency; and the timescales for the delivery of these steps and plans. [34491/15]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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As the deputy may be aware, the three Irish banks in which the state is a shareholder do not seek to hold on to property assets for any substantial period of time. In cases where a bank becomes the mortgagee in possession of a residential asset the banks seek to bring the residential asset to the market as quickly as possible.

With regard to AIB, the bank has informed me that as of the end of August 2015, AIB was the mortgagee in possession in respect of 560 residential assets of which 230 were sale agreed with purchasers. The remaining 330 residential assets are either currently on the market or being prepared to put on the market. Of these 330 residential assets remaining for sale, circa 23% of them are located in the Dublin area with the rest spread throughout the country with no material concentration in any specific location or county. AIB works with the Housing Agency in respect of properties in which it is the mortgagee in possession that may be suitable for their requirements. The bank is mortgagee in possession in respect of a minimal amount of land assets with no concentration in any given location and no land capable of being developed for multiple housing units.

Similarly, at the end of September 2015, I have been informed that PTSB is the mortgagee in possession in respect of 402 residential assets of which 72 are sale agreed with purchasers, 149 residential assets are on the market for sale, 13% of them are located in the Dublin area with the rest spread throughout the country with no material concentration in any specific county. The remaining 181 are being prepared for sale. PTSB also works with the Housing Agency where appropriate. PTSB is also mortgagee of minimal land assets and no land capable of being developed for multiple housing units.

Bank of Ireland, in which the state has a shareholding of 13.95%, has indicated that all required declarations to the market in relation to assets held by the Bank of Ireland Group can be found in their Annual Report for 2014, which can be found on the company's website: .