Jack Chambers (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
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1026. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if an unsuccessful application to the Rebuilding Ireland home loan scheme by persons (details supplied) will be examined; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that a condition within the scheme is resulting in many applications being refused; his plans to address this issue; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12128/18]

Eoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael)
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Following a review of the two existing local authority home loan schemes, the House Purchase Loan and the Home Choice Loan, a new loan offering, the Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan, was introduced on 1 February 2018.

Section 63(3) of the Local Government Act 2001 provides that, subject to law, a local authority is independent in the performance of its functions. Section 6 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009 specifically provides that the Minister's power to issue policy directions and guidelines to housing authorities in relation to their housing functions should not be construed as enabling the Minister to exercise any power or control in relation to any individual case with which a housing authority is or may be concerned. The Minister is, therefore, precluded from intervening in relation to individual cases.

It continues to be the case under the Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan, as with the previous local authority House Purchase Loan, that single applicants applying for the loan must not be earning greater than €50,000 gross per annum and the combined income of joint applicants must not be greater than €75,000 gross per annum. This is to ensure the effective targeting of limited resources. 

The final decision on loan approval is a matter for each local authority and its Credit Committee on a case-by-case basis. Decisions on all housing loan applications must be made in accordance with the statutory credit policy that underpins the scheme, in order to ensure consistency of treatment for all applicants. Loan applicants who are dissatisfied with a loan application decision of a local authority Credit Committee may appeal that decision to the local authority. Details of the appeals process can be obtained from the relevant local authority.

The option for borrowers with incomes in excess of the income limits set for the Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan is to seek housing finance from a commercial lender.