Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 25 February 2010
29 Deputy Ciarán Lynch asked the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government if he will confirm that 43% of householders paying loans under shared ownership schemes are in arrears; the steps he will take to deal with this problem; if, in the case of default, the occupants will be permitted to remain in their homes with the option of becoming council tenants; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9522/10]
View answerMy Department does not collect data on arrears in relation to households purchasing under the shared ownership scheme specifically. However, data published in the annual service indicators in local authorities give details on local authority mortgage arrears generally, including mortgages drawn down by households purchasing under shared ownership, as well as households purchasing under the tenant purchase scheme, and under the various affordable housing schemes. The most recent data from the 2008 report shows local authorities mortgage arrears running at 11.7%.
Provisions regarding lending by local authorities for the purposes of house purchase are set out in section 11 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1992. Where a loan stands in default, section 11(10) provides that a local authority may make such monetary arrangements with a borrower as they consider equitable to take account of the particular circumstances of the borrower. Local authorities can and do exercise the powers available to them under the Act and endeavour, in all arrears cases, to engage proactively and constructively with a distressed borrower with the aim of enabling a household remain in their home.
However, to support consistency of approach and ensure best practice across all local authority areas, my Department is currently developing guidance, based on the regulator's code of conduct, to ensure that cases of local authority mortgage arrears are handled in a manner that is sympathetic to the needs of the particular household, while also protecting the position of the local authority concerned.
