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Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 13 Nov 1984

Vol. 353 No. 9

Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - House Grants.

26.

asked the Minister for the Environment when the £5,000 grant for house purchase will come into operation.

27.

asked the Minister for the Environment the stage at which local authority tenants-tenant purchasers buying houses in the private sector will be paid the £5,000 grant; if it will be paid on entering into contract or on completion of mortgage; and if the grant can be used as a deposit.

30.

asked the Minister for the Environment if there are any circumstances where a local authority tenant purchasing a private house will in fact be paid less than the £5,000 grant mentioned in Building on Reality, 1985-1987.

31.

asked the Minister for the Environment if the amount of a housing finance loan will be reduced on payment by £5,000 where the applicant is the tenant of a local authority house.

32.

asked the Minister for the Environment if he will state how the new £5,000 grant, applicable to local authority tenants of three years standing or more will apply to a person (details supplied) in Dublin 12 who is surrendering a local authority house where he has been a tenant for almost five years as he is a Housing Finance Agency loan applicant with Dublin Corporation to purchase a house, the approval for which is about to issue.

I propose to take Questions Nos. 26, 27, 30, 31 and 32 together.

A circular letter has issued today to housing authorities giving details of the new grant. The grant scheme will be administered generally by local authorities and payments will be made by my Department on receipt of the appropriate payment certificates from local authorities.

As regards the specific matters raised in the questions the position is as follows: The operative date for the new scheme is 2 October 1984. Subject to meeting the other grant conditions, an applicant will be eligible to receive the grant on occupation of the private house if the contract for the purchase of the private house was entered into on or after 2 October 1984, or where a new house is being built by him on his own site, if the foundations were completed on or after that date. The grant will be payable in one sum when the applicant has surrendered vacant possession of his dwelling to the local authority and has purchased and occupied the private dwelling.

Because of the nature of the scheme, the actual payment of the grant cannot be made until the house has been purchased and occupied. Some applicants may wish to use the availability of the grant in lieu of a deposit and for this purpose, local authorities are being asked to raise no objection if, for example, applicants wish to assign the payment to a third party such as a lending agency or a builder.

The grant will in all cases be £5,000.

In order to ensure that moneys provided under the grant scheme will actually be applied towards the building or purchase of a house, it will be a condition of the scheme that any loan, together with grants payable, other than the mortgage subsidy, must not exceed the gross cost of the house, including reasonable legal and other incidental expenses. There is no question, however, of any automatic reduction of the amount of a loan by the amount of grant payable.

It would not be possible to anticipate the result of any specific application for a grant. It will be a matter for the local authority concerned to deal with the application in accordance with the terms of the scheme.

I should like to ask the Minister if he will consider extending the scheme to cover those who are described as special category tenants?

This scheme is a very generous one embracing a wide group of people at present. Since the scheme has hardly got off the ground, I have not considered its extension. Naturally, I will examine the situation. I will be placing details of the scheme for Deputies' consideration in the Library. Then if anybody wishes to make proposals I shall have them considered.

The Minister stated that, provided the 2 October commencement date is complied with, when an applicant takes up residence in the private house, having already surrendered the local authority house, the grant is then payable in one sum directly to the applicant. Is that what the Minister said?

That is correct.

Directly to the applicant?

I said there was an exception to this. On the initiative of the applicant himself, where he wishes the money to be directed to a builder or a lending agency, if he wants to use it as part of the deposit, which I think is——

May I have an assurance from the Minister that there is no question, as has been rumoured, that the grant will be deducted from the total amount of the SDA or HFA loan which will be allocated to an applicant?

I am sure the Deputy would agree that the amount of the loan and grant, together, cannot exceed the cost of the house.

Of course.

With that exception I do not envisage any other reductions.

Have local authorities been advised by the Minister's Department to reduce the loan allocated by a figure of £5,000 where that loan has been granted?

No such instruction has issued from my Department.

What are the exact conditions a purchaser must fulfil to ensure the payment of the grant? Is just being in occupation of the house purchased adequate, or will his Department require proof of title or some legal document that the applicant has purchased the house? The Minister said "occupation"; is that all?

No, that is not all. An applicant certainly will have to prove that he is the legal owner of the new house. Details of the scheme are being circulated to all local authorities today. If the Deputy wishes to see these details I shall let him have them this afternoon.

The Minister spoke about a commencement date of 2 October and applicants having completed or signed contracts. Could he clarify exactly what he means by the signature of a contract? There seems to be some confusion among solicitors and so on about what contract the Minister is referring to. For example, is it the title, the contract to purchase or to what exactly is he referring?

Any arrangements made or contracts entered into to purchase houses before 2 October will not be eligible. I think the date of commencement of eligibility announced, 2 October, has been very generous. I repeat that the operative date is 2 October. Subject to compliance with the grant conditions, applicants must occupy the private house before the grant is payable. That would assume that the contract has been completed and evidence to that effect will have to be furnished to local authorities.

I appreciate that, but I am sure the Minister is aware that there will bound to be borderline cases with regard to the operative date of 2 October. For example, I have had a number of inquiries about what contract the Minister is referring to when he says that contracts signed before 2 October will not render applicants eligible for this grant. Could the Minister say what precisely is meant by the contract?

Usually when one is buying a house there is a solicitor dealing with the transactions. For example, if it is a new house the applicant will sign a form with his and the builder's solicitor drawing up the necessary documentation. As soon as a purchaser signs the contract to purchase a new house, that becomes the operative date. In the case of a second-hand house the same thing would apply: one would be called in by one's solicitor and asked to complete the necessary documentation, that is, signature of the contract at that stage. The deed of title may not be presented on that precise date but certainly the contract for purchase would be signed by both parties and that would then become the operative date.

28.

asked the Minister for the Environment if the £5,000 grant scheme for local authority tenants/tenant purchasers covers purchasers of previously owned local authority funded houses; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

29.

asked the Minister for the Environment if the £5,000 grant will be paid to local authority tenants who purchase private second-hand houses and houses privately owned which were purchased by tenants from local authorities.

33.

asked the Minister for the Environment if he will consider the extension of the proposed £5,000 grant for house purchase to include applicants of special category status.

34.

asked the Minister for the Environment if persons living in Government owned houses, such as houses owned by ACOT, would qualify for the new £5,000 grant in the event of their vacating their homes.

I propose to take Questions No. 28, 29, 33 and 34, inclusive, together.

It is not proposed to provide for payment of the new £5,000 grant to all persons who have special category status for the purposes of local authority and HFA house purchase loans or to persons living in houses provided by bodies such as ACOT. As indicated in the national plan, the grant will apply to qualifying local authority tenants and tenant-purchasers who buy or build private houses and surrender their local authority dwellings in a condition suitable for letting to a housing applicant. A house which had previously been purchased from a local authority and which is available for resale would be accepted as a private house for the purposes of the grant.

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