Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 20 February 2014
160. Deputy Seán Ó Fearghaíl asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if a court repossession order is sufficient proof that a home loan is unsustainable, therefore bestowing eligibility with regard to that issue for inclusion on the social housing list; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8654/14]
View answerIn order for a household to qualify for social housing support, a housing authority must carry out an assessment to establish whether the household meets specified eligibility requirements and has a housing need. One of the housing need criteria prescribed in the Social Housing Assessment Regulations 2011 is that the household has a mortgage that is deemed to be unsustainable under the Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process. Qualification under this criterion is not dependent on the making of a possession order as my Department has advised housing authorities that, upon receipt of written confirmation from the lender that a household’s mortgage has been deemed unsustainable, an authority may consider the household to have a housing need, even though the household may, at that time, remain the legal owners of the dwelling concerned.
