Seán Canney (Galway East, Independent)
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72. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if he will remove the means testing for persons that suffer from thalidomide that are applying for housing adaptation grants; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6935/22]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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My Department provides funding to local authorities so as to enable them administer the Housing Adaptation Grants for Older People and People with a Disability scheme. These schemes assist eligible applicants living in privately owned homes to make their accommodation more suitable for their needs.

The grants available operate on a sliding scale with the highest percentage grants available to those with the lowest incomes and vice versa. The schemes are means tested. Grant assistance is not available to applicants whose household income exceeds €60,000 per annum.

Housing for All, however, commits to undertaking a review of the range of housing grants available to assist with meeting specific housing needs both for our ageing population and people with a disability which includes a review of the existing grant limits and income thresholds applicable to the grant schemes. The review is being undertaken this year.

Gerald Nash (Louth, Labour)
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73. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government when the eligibility criteria for the new affordable purchase schemes will be published; when these schemes will open for applications; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7008/22]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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As set out in Housing for All, this Government is committed to supporting 54,000 new affordable homes by 2030, of which 36,000 will be for purchase. The Affordable Housing Act 2021 provides for two new affordable purchase schemes, which will both be targeted at moderate-income households constrained by the maximum mortgage and deposit available to them.

The Local Authority Affordable Purchase Scheme will see local authorities make homes available for purchase on their own land. Regulations to set out the detailed criteria for the Scheme are at an advanced stage and will be issued in the coming weeks.

The first affordable purchase homes will be made available on an administrative basis at Boherboy in Cork next month. Cork City Council has indicated these will cost €218,000 for a 2-bedroom, and €243,000 for a 3-bedroom dwelling. These will be followed by a scheme at Dun Emer in Dublin, where Fingal County Council has indicated a 2-bed apartment will cost €166,000, and a 3-bed dwelling will be between €206,000 and €258,000.

Separately, the First Home affordable purchase scheme will operate for the period 2022 to 2026, deploying overall c. €400m jointly funded by the State and retail banks. It will support eligible first-time buyers to buy a new-build home in private developments. A new First Home Designated Activity Company, incorporated in December, will operate this scheme. Significant work is continuing on the detailed design and parameters of the scheme, and full details will be confirmed upon completion of this work. It is anticipated that initial activity on key areas of work, including public communications, will be undertaken in Q1 in advance of First Home’s first receipt of applications and deployment of equity support, scheduled for Q2 this year.