Alan Farrell (Dublin Fingal, Fine Gael)
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254. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the breakdown of preferences expressed by applicants for social housing in Fingal, County Dublin; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12543/22]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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The information requested is not available in my Department.

Applications for social housing support are assessed by the relevant local authority, in accordance with the eligibility and need criteria set down in section 20 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009 and the associated Social Housing Assessment Regulations 2011 (as amended).

In line with the Regulations, applicant households are assessed for eligibility in the first instance. Then, if deemed eligible, their housing need and accommodation requirements are assessed.

Decisions on the most appropriate form of housing support, and the allocation of that support, are a matter solely for the local authority concerned.

Alan Farrell (Dublin Fingal, Fine Gael)
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255. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government when HAP payment limits were last reviewed by Fingal County Council; if there is a plan to review them again in the near future; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12544/22]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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The Programme for Government commits to ensuring that Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) levels are adequate to support vulnerable households, while we increase the supply of social housing. Maximum rent limits for HAP were set for each housing authority area in 2016, in conjunction with the Department of Social Protection (DSP). In reviewing the rent limits, my Department worked closely with DSP and monitored data gathered from the Residential Tenancies Board and the HAP Shared Services Centre. 

Local authorities also have the flexibility to agree to a HAP payment of up to 20% above the maximum rent limit, because of local rental market conditions and up to 50% in the Dublin region for those households either in, or at immediate risk of, homelessness.

Under Housing for All, my Department was tasked with undertaking an analytical exercise to examine whether an increase in the level of discretion available to Local Authorities under HAP is required, in order to maintain adequate levels of HAP support. 

The Housing Agency undertook to carry out this analytical exercise on behalf of my Department. The review was submitted on 20 December 2021. It is undergoing analysis by my Department and I expect to receive recommendations following that analysis.

Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
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256. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government when the affordable housing scheme, the first home scheme will be rolled out in Limerick; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12548/22]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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The Affordable Housing Act 2021, the provisions of which I commenced in August and September 2021, laid the foundation for the introduction of two new affordable purchase schemes: the first to be delivered via Local Authorities and the Land Development Agency, and the second a national 'First Home' shared equity scheme supporting purchases in the private market. 

Part 2 of the Affordable Housing Act underpins the Local Authority Affordable Purchase Scheme, under which Local Authorities will make homes available to eligible buyers using an equity share model. Regulations to set out the detailed criteria for eligibility and the processes for purchase are at an advanced stage and will be issued in the coming weeks. 

Limerick City and County Council delivered its Housing Delivery Action Plan to me in December 2021, which allowed it to assess the level of need for affordable housing in the Local Authority area based on the Housing Need and Demand Assessment tool. This will allow the Council to plan provision accordingly. 

Funding for a number of affordable schemes in Limerick was approved in principle in 2019 under the Serviced Sites Fund, to assist in the delivery of approximately 500 affordable purchase and cost rental homes, with these projects currently at planning and design stages. My Department is working closely with Limerick City and County Council to progress these schemes. 

Part 4 of the Affordable Housing Act provides the basis for the First Home Scheme, which will be available nationwide. The scheme will support first-time buyers on moderate incomes in purchasing new-build homes by means of an equity share model, similar to that used in the Local Authority Affordable Purchase scheme. First Home will be subject to regional price ceilings reflective of the median prices paid by first-time buyers for new-build homes, so it is an intervention to assist buyers in the lower portion of the home price distribution. The scheme will be targeted at those who have insufficient funds to purchase one of these homes using the mortgage and deposit available to them, and will use equity support to ‘bridge the gap’. 

Budget 2022 allocated €44 million to my Department for First Home. The banking sector has confirmed it is committed to working with the State to develop and deliver this scheme, and has agreed in principle to match this State funding in order to increase the pool of funding available to potential new homeowners. Subject to the necessary approvals by all parties, it is anticipated that the First Home scheme will operate for the period 2022 to 2025, utilising overall funding of c. €400m to provide support to c. 8,000 households to purchase new homes. 

The scheme will be operated via the First Home Scheme Ireland Designated Activity Company, which has recently been incorporated. Significant work is continuing on the detailed design and parameters of the scheme, and full details including scheme conditionality will be confirmed upon completion of this work. It is anticipated that initial activity, including public communications, will be conducted early in May of this year, in advance of the first receipt of applications and deployment of equity support, which is scheduled for the end of Q2. 

Separately, under the Local Infrastructure Housing Activation Fund (LIHAF), funding was awarded for a new distributor road and associated infrastructure in Mungret, County Limerick. The original LIHAF housing commitment was estimated at 399 units, to include 60 social, 60 affordable and 179 cost reduced homes with a discount of approximately €9,000. To end 2021, Limerick City and County Council have confirmed that 152 homes have been completed, which includes 81 social and 71 cost reduced homes. The Council has recently indicated that 51 homes will complete in 2022, to include 23 social and 28 cost reduced, and a further 109 homes in 2024, to include 55 social and 54 affordable homes. Final housing numbers and timeline of completion will be available as the project progresses.