Sinn Féin spokesperson on Housing, Eoin Ó Broin TD, has said that extending the controversial shared equity loan scheme to second-hand homes will push up house prices and make it even more difficult for first-time buyers to buy a home.

The Dublin Mid West TD was responding to budget speculation from Fianna Fáil backbenchers, who have called for the scheme to be made available to first-time buyers purchasing second-hand homes.

Teachta Ó Broin said:

“The controversial shared equity loan scheme is bad Fianna Fáil housing policy at its very worst. It risks pushing up house prices while saddling hard-working people with ever greater levels of debt.

“A number of Fianna Fáil TDs and Senators are now calling for it to be extended to second-hand properties in Budget 2024.

“This would be a serious mistake. Providing would-be buyers with increased credit, even in the form of a state equity share, will not deliver a single extra home. Rather it will increase the purchasing power of some buyers, pushing up second-hand house prices.

“This will, in turn, make it even more IFI cult for would-be buyers to purchase a home of their own.

“Government must stop fanning the flames of house price inflation. Rather they should use Budget 2024 to ramp up investment in the delivery of much-needed affordable homes to rent and buy. We need at least 8000 genuinely affordable homes a year to meet current need.

“Last year, the government delivered less than 400 affordable purchase homes and just over 600 cost rental homes, many of which were not even affordable.

“Large-scale delivery of public housing to meet social and affordable need is the only way to reverse the damage done by decades of bad Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael housing policy.”