The Minister for Housing has published his new plan for delivering affordable housing. Local T.D. Emer Higgins, who sits on the Housing Committee, has explained what this means to prospective first time buyers. “Many young people and couples are paying upwards on €1,500 rent in places like Lucan for a two-bed apartment, when they would much prefer to be paying a €1,000 mortgage for a home they will actually own. However, many of them can’t afford to do that because they either can’t get a mortgage as they can’t save for a deposit, or they can’t find a home locally that is in their price range. The nub of the problem is: affordability and supply. And, that’s why I’m pleased that the ‘Housing For All’ plan aims to bridge the affordability gap and boost supply,” said Deputy Emer Higgins.
“The Shared Equity Scheme, which was published in this new Bill, is an affordability measure that should help 3,000 couples, individuals or families caught in that rental trap. It involves the State taking a stake of up to 30% in any new build home subject to regional price caps, and means a buyer takes out a 70% mortgage after that. From the buyer’s perspective there’s no charge on that 30% for the first 5 years and there’s no onus to pay off the 30% until the house is sold, so it’s an attractive proposition that makes buying your own home more affordable and more achievable. It is based on the fact that there are planning permissions for over 40,000 units in Dublin alone but that the building of these homes isn’t happening fast enough,” explained Emer Higgins.
“This scheme is about incentivising building for existing planning permissions on a large scale to boost supply as quickly as possible. €75m, 2% of the overall Housing Budget, has been put aside to cover 3,000 homes. I think this is a really positive development and I hope that many young people, couples and families from Lucan, Clondalkin, Rathcoole, Newcastle and Palmerstown will benefit from this,” concluded Emer Higgins, local T.D.
