Barry Cowen (Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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212. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government his Department's involvement in reforming or designing a successor to the mortgage to rent scheme with the Department of Finance. [4713/17]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The Mortgage to Rent (MTR) scheme for borrowers of private commercial lending institutions was introduced in 2012. The scheme is part of the overall suite of social housing options and is an important part of the mortgage arrears resolution process. Up to the end of December 2016, a total of 3,575 cases have been submitted under the MTR scheme. Of these, 2,723 were ineligible or terminated during the process, 217 have been completed with 635 applications being actively progressed. The reasons why a case has not progressed are varied and can depend on the lender, the property, the household and the ability of the Approved Housing Body sector to increase their involvement in the scheme. Statistical information relating to the Mortgage to Rent Scheme since its inception is available on the Housing Agency’s website at the following weblink: .

A number of amendments were made to the MTR Scheme in July 2015 to enable more properties to qualify for the scheme and to make the scheme more flexible and accessible to borrowers. Notwithstanding the amendments already made, the Government is committed to supporting households in long-term mortgage arrears to remain in their homes and included a review of the MTR Scheme as an action in Rebuilding Ireland: An Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness. The review of the Mortgage to Rent scheme is now being finalised and I expect it will recommend a number of changes to the current scheme to make it work better for borrowers.