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Home Loan Scheme

Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 21 March 2018

Wednesday, 21 March 2018

Questions (329)

Catherine Murphy

Question:

329. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government if his attention has been drawn to the fact that a number of persons who have used the Rebuilding Ireland home loan scheme online calculator are being contacted by local authorities and being advised that they may only borrow a sum that is significantly short of the amount initially calculated in view of the fact that they inputted up-to-date and truthful financial figures; if the online calculator takes into account or is affected by the requirement for mortgage protection insurance; if the Rebuilding Ireland home loan scheme can offer amounts comparable with bank offerings for first-time buyers; the number of applications made for the scheme by the offers made, drawdowns and applications declined by county; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13026/18]

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Written answers

Following a review of the two existing local authority home loan schemes, the House Purchase Loan and the Home Choice Loan, a new loan offering, known as the Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan, was introduced on 1 February 2018.

The Home Loan calculator on www.rebuildingirelandhomeloan.ie gives an indication of how much you can borrow over the maximum term allowable and what the estimated repayments would be. A shorter loan term will reduce the amount you can borrow. All indicative repayment amounts are exclusive of Mortgage Protection Insurance (MPI) which is a requirement of borrowing. The calculator gives indicative results for illustrative and guidance purposes only and is not an offer of a loan.

As with the previous local authority home loan offerings, the Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan is a local authority product and loan applications are made directly to the local authority in whose area the property proposed for purchase is situated. My Department does not collect information on the number of enquiries to local authorities regarding the loan, the number of complete loan applications received by local authorities, or the reasons as to why a loan application may be declined.

The final decision on loan approval is a matter for each local authority and its Credit Committee on a case-by-case basis. Decisions on all housing loan applications must be made in accordance with the statutory credit policy that underpins the scheme, in order to ensure consistency of treatment for all applicants. Loan applicants who are dissatisfied with a loan application decision of a local authority Credit Committee may appeal that decision to the local authority. Details of the appeals process can be obtained from the relevant local authority.

As is currently the case, my Department will continue to publish information on the overall number and value of (1) local authority loan approvals and (2) local authority loan drawdowns on its website at the following link - http://www.housing.gov.ie/housing/statistics/house-prices-loans-and-profile-borrowers/local-authority-loan-activity. This information is currently updated to Q3 2017.

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