Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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591. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if a tenant to a local authority or a tenant referred to a housing association by a local authority can avail of a Rebuilding Ireland home loan; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26597/18]

Eoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael)
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The Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan is designed to enable credit-worthy first-time buyers to access sustainable mortgage lending to purchase new or second-hand properties in a suitable price range. The scheme is targeted at first-time buyers who have access to an adequate deposit and have the capacity to repay a mortgage, but who are unable to access a mortgage sufficient for them to purchase their first home. The low rate of fixed interest associated with the Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan provides first-time buyers with access to mortgage finance that they may not otherwise be able to afford at a higher interest rate.

Single applicants for the loan must not be earning greater than €50,000 gross per annum. The combined income of joint applicants must not be greater than €75,000 per annum. There are no set minimum income limits; however, applicants do need to have sufficient borrowing and repayment capacity and must be capable of repaying the mortgage in accordance with the statutory credit policy underpinning the loan. These income limits are unchanged from the previous local authority loan offerings.

Full details of the loan's eligibility criteria and other information is available from the dedicated Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan website: http://rebuildingirelandhomeloan.ie/. 

Any person who meets the eligibility criteria may apply for a loan, regardless of whether or not they are on the local authority housing list or qualify for social housing support.

Brian Stanley (Laois, Sinn Fein)
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592. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government when persons who are legally divorced or separated and have legally discharged their interest in the family home are applying for the Rebuilding Ireland home loan scheme, the terms of the financial gain provisions that currently prevent applicants from applying; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26601/18]

Eoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael)
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The Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan Scheme enables credit-worthy first-time buyers to access sustainable mortgage lending to purchase new or second-hand properties in a suitable price range, where they cannot obtain sufficient mortgage finance from a commercial lender. 

As with the previous local authority loan offerings, the Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan is available to first-time buyers only. There is no change to this regard. This is set out in the regulations governing the Scheme so as to ensure the effective targeting of limited resources. 

Applicants who are separated or divorced may be treated as first-time buyers, in accordance with the regulations, if they meet certain conditions, including: 

- they are separated or divorced under a court order or by a separation agreement;

- the property being purchased is the first property since leaving the family home;

- they have left the family home and retain no interest in it; or

- the other party has remained in the family home.

In meeting the conditions as set out above, in particular that the other party has remained in the family home and that the potential applicant has relinquished any rights they had over that property, no financial gain should have been made by the potential applicant in exchange for relinquishing their rights to the property in this manner. Were the individual to have made a financial gain in releasing their rights to the property, such as being bought out by the other party who remains resident in it, they would be deemed to have been compensated for their interest in the property, and therefore not be eligible as a first-time buyer.

The loans are provided by the Local Authorities and the applications are assessed by the Housing Agency on their behalf. Each local authority must have in place a credit committee which makes the final decision on applications for loans, in accordance with the regulations and having regard to the recommendations made by the Housing Agency.