Affordable Housing Scheme

• The Affordable Housing Scheme is a scheme in Ireland that aims to help lower income households to buy their own homes.
  
  
• The Scheme allows lower-income house buyers the chance to buy newly constructed homes and apartments in areas where property prices have created an affordability gap for lower income house buyers. These properties are then offered for sale to eligible first-time purchasers at prices significantly less than their actual market value.
  
  
• The houses are usually bought with a mortgage provided either by IIB Homeloans, EBS or Bank of Ireland or through the local authority.
  
  
• The loan can be up to 100% of the price of the house is you arrange a mortgage with one of the banks or 97% if you use the local authority.
  
  
• Mortgage terms of up ti 35 years.

Rules

You qualify for the Affordable Housing Scheme if :

• you are in need of housing and your income satisfies the income test below, or
• you are registered on a housing waiting list with a local authority, or
• you are a local authority tenant or a tenant purchaser and you want to buy a private house and return your present house to the local authority, or
• you are a tenant for more than one year of a home provided by a housing association under the Capital Loan and Subsidy Scheme and you want to buy a private house and return your present house to the housing association.

The income test only applies to people mentioned in the first bullet point; if you are covered by the second, third or fourth bullet points, you are exempt from the income test.

The income test

• Single income household

If your gross income (before tax) in the last income tax year was 40,000 euro or less, you are eligible.

• Two income households

Multiply the gross income (before tax) of the higher earner in the last income tax year by 2.5 and add the gross income of the other earner in the last income tax year. If the answer is 100,000 euro or less, you are eligible.

How to apply

Contact your local authority for an application form and information pack about the Affordable Housing Scheme in your area. (You'll find the contact details in the Affordable Home Handbook)

You may be required to supply the following information with your application:

• A current payslip from your employer
• An Income tax form (P60) or a PAYE balancing Sheet (P21)
• Other documentation that may be requested by the local authority.

You may also be requested to submit a letter from your employer confirming that you are a permanent employee. For self-employed people, you may be required to submit audited accounts for the previous three years.

If you are currently living in rented accommodation, you may have to produce a statement of your weekly rent signed by the landlord or you can submit a copy of your rent book with your application.

Applications for affordable housing under Part V of the Planning and Development Acts 2000 - 2002 are made to your local authority.

For more Info visit AffordableHome.ie or

Download the Affordable Home Handbook