Noel Rock (Dublin North West, Fine Gael)
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272. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if the Housing Finance Agency or his Department have been approached for funding from approved housing bodies for the purchasing of properties at a location (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28371/18]

Eoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael)
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My Department offers a range of funding programmes to assist the voluntary sector with the delivery of social housing, including the Capital Advance Leasing Facility (CALF) and the Capital Assistance Scheme (CAS).

CALF is a facility, which is exclusively available to Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs), to assist them in accessing private or Housing Finance Agency (HFA) finance for the purchase, construction or refurbishment of units that will be made available for social housing purposes under the Social Housing Current Expenditure Programme (SHCEP).

In order for a CALF application to be advanced to my Department, there is a substantial amount of work to be progressed. It is essential to the overall process that an AHB engages at an early stage with the relevant local authority to discuss demand and general suitability of a proposed scheme/ units. Once the CALF application is submitted to my Department, the relevant local authority will be asked to provide formal comments on the proposal, including on the housing need in the locality, the local authority's intention to exercise their nomination rights, sustainable communities, financial details including market rent, and overall suitability. In this context, local authorities play a key role in the operation of the CALF facility. The Housing Agency will perform a financial appraisal of the application. My Department will then make a decision whether a proposed scheme is suitable for conditional approval for CALF funding.

To date, my Department has not received an application for funding for the aforementioned project. My Department is aware that an AHB has held discussions with Fingal County Council with regard to this project. However, the progression of the project to funding application stage is a matter between the local authority and the AHB in that context.