The housing crisis is real for many would-be homeowners who queued for days to be eligible to buy in a Co Kildare housing estate.
Buyers queued up from Tuesday sleeping in their cars to be first in line to buy a house at the Harpur Lane estate in Leixlip, Co Kildare in a development built by Cairn Homes.
The estate is in the grounds of the Castletown Estate and was opened in 2022 with 119 homes and 73 apartments selling out quickly.
All homes have energy-efficient heat pump system, extensive insulation and high-performance windows, giving them a comfortable A2 Ber rating.
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People queue for days and sleep in their cars to be eligible to buy in Co Kildare housing estate
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There are 31 homes in question ranging from a two-bedroom mid-terrace house costing €460,000 (91.6 sq m) to €525,000 (118.5 sq m) for an end-of-terrace three-bedroom house. The Harpur Lane development began in 2022
Despite the steep prices for first time homes, there has been no shortage of interest in the development not only for those who queued for days, but those who turned up early for the 10.30am showings.
Those who had queued for days had their names and email addresses taken for the queue for houses and were told to go home. They were placed on the top of the list for housing.
Anna from Estonia came on Friday evening at 6pm to secure a house, 14 and a half hours before they were opened to public. She was 48th on the list but managed to secure one as she did not apply for the help-to-buy scheme. Only six homes are eligible under the help-to-buy scheme.
She has three children between ages of 10 and 15. “I’m excited. I have been saving for this for a good number of years. It was worth it.”
Seán and Tatiana Dexter were only mortgage-approved on Thursday. They showed up on Saturday morning at 7am to be told they were number 79 on the list. “We might get on the cancellation list, but the vast majority of houses are not on the help-to-buy scheme,” Seán said. The Government are giving first-time buyers up to €30,000 for a deposit.
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“Based on what I have heard today is that sleeping in your cars is a bit unnecessary. It’s about getting here as early as you can and finding an agent and then waiting.
“We arrived at 7am and there were barriers erected. People weren’t being registered until 8.30am this morning. We are going to try and listen out for any notifications that are given to us about new housing and try and be on top of any development when we can.”
Paul Molloy came with the purposes of buying a buy-to-let property. “There is going to be a housing shortage for the next 25 years. I have two young daughters, one 13 and one 9, and I’m concerned about buying an investment property so there is something there for them when they get older.
“There’s an abject failure to sort out the housing crisis and a lack of a political will if you ask me. The problem is that local councillors adopt a Nimby approach and they don’t want development in their own backyard. The objection system is extraordinary. You get local councillors using political influence to stop developments taking place. The only way out of the housing crisis is to build more houses and apartments.”
A striking feature of the queues for the Harper Lane development were that the number of non-Irish nationals queuing for houses was substantially greater than the number of Irish who were there.
One Indian man, who was there with his wife, said the rents they pay in Leopardstown would be the equivalent of a mortgage on one of the homes in Harpur Lane. He and his wife are mortgaged approved and they are prepared to make the long commute from Leixlip to Leopardstown to own one of the houses.
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