Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 17 November 2016
159. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government the extent to which enhanced measures can be put in place to make housing more affordable to first-time buyers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35592/16]
View answerThe lack of a sufficient supply of homes to meet demand has led to the current pressures in the housing market, making it difficult for first-time and other buyers to access housing at affordable levels.
The Rebuilding Ireland Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness outlines the Government’s commitment to develop a fully functioning housing market that meets the housing needs of all, by overcoming the current supply shortfall and increasing the national supply level to over 25,000 new homes per year by 2021. Rebuilding Ireland takes a holistic approach in addressing the many interacting structural constraints affecting the housing market by including actions to streamline the planning system, remove infrastructure blockages and support the delivery of affordable housing. These measures should help make new developments economically viable in areas where supply constraints and price pressures are particularly acute.
Only last week, I announced details of 23 Major Urban Housing Development Sites with the potential to deliver up to 30,000 additional homes on existing zoned lands and close to the key areas of demand over the next three to four years. These sites will be highlighted as exemplars for the co-ordination and delivery of plan-led housing development and active land management.
In order to quickly get these and other key sites moving, a €200 million Local Infrastructure Housing Activation Fund (LIHAF) has been established. Twenty-one local authorities, working in conjunction with housing providers, submitted proposals for funding which are currently being evaluated. Successful bid proposals will be announced in December.
Separately, the NTMA and ISIF are currently exploring opportunities to support the delivery of housing-related on-site enabling infrastructure in large-scale priority development areas with a view to kick starting the development process.
Given the particular challenge faced by first-time buyers in accessing the housing market, my colleague, the Minister for Finance, recently announced a Help-to-Buy initiative as part of Budget 2017. The Help-to-Buy initiative has been designed to complement the structural measures announced in Rebuilding Ireland; by providing immediate and targeted support for first-time buyers of new homes in meeting their deposit requirements, greater certainty regarding the pool of available purchasers is provided to the house-building sector, encouraging the construction of new housing units.
The combined effect of these, and other actions, under the Plan, will help reduce costs and deliver more housing at affordable prices, where it is greatly needed.
