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Housing Policy

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 27 November 2018

Tuesday, 27 November 2018

Questions (602, 603)

Bernard Durkan

Question:

602. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the action he will take in terms of reform to address the issue of families having to spend more than half the family income to meet rent payments; if provision will be made in which families can compete with investors in the market place to provide themselves with a home rather than the current situation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49483/18]

View answer

Bernard Durkan

Question:

603. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the action he will take in terms of public expenditure and reform with a view to ensuring that the domestic customer has a reasonable chance of purchasing a home notwithstanding the competition from investors; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49485/18]

View answer

Written answers

I propose to take Questions Nos. 602 and 603 together.

Ensuring that we have a supply of housing that is affordable for people to buy or rent, depending on their choice and circumstances, is a priority for the Government. In overall terms, the key elements of the Government’s approach to addressing the issues in our housing sector are set out in the Rebuilding Ireland Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness, and Project Ireland 2040, which set out a comprehensive set of measures designed to restore the housing market to a sustainable equilibrium.

The generally accepted convention is that housing is deemed affordable where households, particularly low or moderate income households, are paying not much more than a third of their disposable income on meeting their accommodation needs. In order to support households that have difficulty in accessing affordable housing, a multi-stranded, targeted approach is being pursued in the areas of the country most affected. The measures are targeted at households earning a maximum of €50,000 for a single applicant or €75,000 for a couple.

Under Budget 2019, the Government has trebled, to €310 million, the funding available for key facilitating infrastructure on local authority sites, to support the provision of affordable homes to purchase or rent, under the Serviced Sites Fund (SSF).

In terms of the type of affordable housing that will be delivered on local authority sites it may be affordable housing for purchase, for example, under the recently commenced provisions of Part 5 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009, or cost rental, which is being advanced on a number of pilot sites before being rolled out further. These initiatives complement other Government actions which help first-time buyers to buy a home, such as the Help to Buy Scheme and the Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan.

The new Land Development Agency (LDA) will also contribute significantly to the delivery of affordable housing. All of the State land developed by the LDA will include 40% social and affordable homes to purchase or rent.

While the State is playing its part in facilitating the additional supply of affordable housing, Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITS) are another component part of a more sustainable, long-term property system. While commercial property investment has been a key focus for some of the REITs launched to date in Ireland, residential property also forms part of the sector's activity. It is expected that the sector will continue to develop over time and increase the supply of professionally managed, good quality, rented accommodation.

Historically, the private rented sector in Ireland has been largely made up of small-scale landlords, who will continue to provide the bulk of private rented accommodation. However, a more diverse sector, which includes institutional investors specialised in providing and managing larger scale residential rental projects, provides more stability and less exposure to property market risk and volatility. Institutional investors can also help provide the range of tenancy options that households need across their lifecycles. Large-scale investment in property has an important role to play in helping to deliver the professional high-standard rental sector required. The fact that institutional investors are entering the rental market, with a clear long-term focus on their investment provides security for tenants who can be confident that their landlord is committed for the long run.

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