Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 12 March 2019
700. Deputy James Browne asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the process for Rebuilding Ireland home loan mortgage applications; if county council approval should be obtained before a deposit is paid; if the 2019 capital loan amounts have issued to each local authority; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11696/19]
View answerThe Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan scheme is administered by local authorities in their areas of responsibility. Each authority has a credit committee which makes the final decision on whether a loan is approved. The Housing Agency provides a central assessment service for the local authorities. Based on a rigorous financial analysis, the Housing Agency make a recommendation for approval or rejection to the local authorities on each application made under the scheme.
The assessments carried out by the Housing Agency and the decisions made by local authority credit committees are made in accordance with the credit policy issued under the Regulations establishing the scheme. The credit policy sets out strict criteria for determining the eligibility of a person to qualify for loan approval and the Housing Agency has recommended that applications be rejected in 49% of the cases it has assessed. With regard to when a person should pay a deposit on a property, that is a matter for individuals themselves to decide.
I am currently in discussions with the Minister for Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform regarding further funding for the scheme. Specific allocations to local authorities for 2019 will be finalised when those discussions have concluded. In the meantime the scheme remains operational and all local authorities should continue to receive and process applications.
