Sinn Féin spokesperson on Housing, Eoin Ó Broin TD, has said that the Shanganagh LDA homes launched by the Taoiseach and Minister for Housing today are not affordable to the vast majority of people.
Teachta Ó Broin said:
“This morning, Taoiseach Simon Harris and Minister for Housing Darragh O’Brien opened the first phase of the Land Development Agency and Dún Laoghaire County Council Shanganagh development.
“Sinn Féin has been campaigning for this site to be developed for social and affordable homes for decades. Agreement was reached in the council back in 2016 for a social and affordable housing scheme but the then Fine Gael Minister Simon Coveney refused to fund it.
“If he had, it would have been completed and tenanted by now and the homes would have been genuinely affordable.
“Unfortunately, the scheme launched today has been greatly delayed and crucially neither the LDA nor the council published the full price list for the cost-rental or purchase homes in advance of the launch.
“What we know is that rents will start from €1250 per month for a studio apartment and purchase prices from €334,600 for a two-bed home.
“What the press release deliberately leaves out is that the purchase homes will come with a hidden €100,000 state equity stake which must be paid back if you want to own the home outright.
“This equity can only be paid down in €10,000 lump sums or must be paid in full by your children. This means that until this is paid you don’t own your own home.
“The cost-rents are also very concerning. If the studios come in at €1250 per month, then the two- and three-bedroom homes are going to be significantly higher.
“This will mean that a huge number of people who are in need of affordable rental homes will be excluded from these as the rents will be more than a third of their take home pay.
“Shanganagh Castle demonstrates that this government is unwilling and unable to deliver genuinely affordable homes for working people.
“Only Sinn Féin’s affordable homes plan can deliver the tens of thousands of affordable homes at genuinely affordable prices that working people both need and deserve.”
