Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 17 Jun 2003

Vol. 568 No. 5

Written Answers. - Local Authority Housing.

Richard Bruton

Question:

419 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for the Environment Heritage and Local Government the trend in the ceiling for loans under the local authority loan scheme over the past five years; the way in which this compares with the average house price purchased with local authority assistance over the past five years in Dublin; and if he will adjust upwards the present ?130,000 limit which is far short of house prices in Dublin. [16406/03]

Minister of State at the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government (Mr. N. Ahern)

The maximum limits for house purchase loans advanced by local authorities in the last five years are set out in the table below and demonstrate that the limit was doubled in 2000 and increased again in 2002 following the introduction of the euro. The average house price funded by the Dublin local authorities, which includes funding under the shared ownership scheme, is also set out in the table.

As the table indicates, the relationship between the average new house price funded by local authorities and the loan limit has fluctuated over time. At the same time, the number of people benefiting from affordable housing schemes and house purchase loans has increased significantly with about 2,800 benefiting in 2002 compared to around 1,000 in 1998. Similar levels of activity are expected in 2003 as in 2002.

My Department is keeping the terms of the loan limit under review, taking into account the movement in house prices, the availability of mortgage finance in the private sector and effectiveness of the various schemes in meeting the needs of the relevant target group.

Year	Loan Limit	Average Price of Newhouse funded by Dublinlocal authorities.
	€	€
1998	63,500	102,286
1999	63,500	115,853
2000	127,000	126,357
2001	127,000	144,210
2002	130,000	170,543