Written answers

Wednesday, 15 June 2022

Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government

Housing Schemes

Photo of Eoin Ó BroinEoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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34. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the income limits under the Affordable Housing Fund scheme for homes with a market value of €200,000, €250,000, €280,000, €300,000, €320,000, €350,000, €380,000, €400,000, €420,000 and €440,000, in tabular form. [31138/22]

Photo of Darragh O'BrienDarragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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Affordable homes supported by the Department's Affordable Housing Fund will be made available to eligible buyers at reduced purchase prices through the Local Authority Affordable Purchase Scheme. The provisions of the scheme are detailed under Part 2 of the Affordable Housing Act 2021. The percentage difference between the market value of the home and the discounted purchase price is reflected in a redeemable equity stake held by the Local Authority of between a minimum of 5% and a maximum 40% of the value of the home.

The income eligibility criteria for the Local Authority scheme are detailed in the Affordable Housing Regulations 2022 (S.I. No. 183/2022), which can be found online at:

www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/2022/si/183/made/en/print.

Under the provisions of these Regulations, the general rule for eligibility is that an applicant's (or applicants' applying jointly) annual gross income multiplied by 3.5 times cannot exceed 85.5% of the market value of the home in question. This rule can be represented by the formula: 3.5 x A = 0.855 x B

(Where A is the annual gross income of the applicant(s), and B is the market value of the home)

This test looks at whether someone would have the capacity to meet a purchase price of more than 95% of market value through using a standard mortgage of 3.5 times income and for 90% of the purchase price (i.e. the maximum mortgage they could obtain without benefiting from one of the limited exemptions from the Central Bank Mortgage Measures).

In the case of a new home with a market value of €250,000, for example, this equation produces the result that the general eligibility limit is an annual gross income of €61,071 (to the nearest euro). Altering the market value of the home will produce different income values accordingly.

As detailed in the Affordable Housing (No. 2) Regulations 2022, once eligibility has been established, affordable homes will be sold to purchasers at discounted prices set according to the purchasing capacity of each applicant household and the minimum level of support which they require. This is subject, however, to minimum prices set by Local Authorities to reflect economic realities and ensure scheme viability.

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