AFFORDABLE HOUSES:Dublin's county councils are doing deals to buy up to 750 homes from developers to sell as affordable housing.
The Affordable Homes Partnership (AHP) is negotiating discounted prices with developers in the greater Dublin area to help eligible buyers purchase up to 750 new homes.
Around 1,000 houses in Dublin, Wicklow, Meath and Kildare have been offered to the partnerships in response to an advertisement last January. The AHP, which delivers affordable houses for Dublin's councils, is in discussions with around 20 different developers to secure discounted prices for homes in up to 30 developments.
"Because of the value on offer in the the market at the moment and the continued demand for affordable housing we are looking at agreeing discounted houses with developers," explained Katherine Banks, project manager with the AHP.
She confirmed that the partnership's 2008 budget of €50 million will be used to subsidise the purchase of between 700 and 750 homes to the tune of around €70,000 per house.
These houses will be in addition to houses supplied by developers as part of their commitment to providing 20 per cent social and affordable housing in residential schemes.
A substantial number of three-bedroom homes priced at around €350,000 have been offered to the partnership by developers, she said. Discounts currently being negotiated range from €5,000 to €50,000, she said.
This means that buyers will eventually pay around €290,000 for three-bedroom homes that were once valued at around €400,000.
The fact that there is "more value to be had in the market" prompted the decision by the AHP to negotiate discounted prices with developers and allow people on affordable homes lists to purchase direct from developers themselves.
Previously the partnership purchased houses from developers and sold them on to affordable buyers.
This will speed up the process and offer "further reductions to affordable buyers", she said.
Meanwhile, there is no sign that the the buyer jitters that prompted a slowdown in the new homes market has had any impact on the affordable homes market.
There has been no reduction in the number of people looking to get on the affordable panel with 17,642 now listed between the seven local authorities, according to Banks.
Given that people are allowed to be on more than one local authority list, this real figure could be significantly lower, she adds. However she confirmed that affordable buyers, just like other new homes buyers, are keeping a close eye on prices reductions in the greater Dublin area.
Affordable schemes, either in dedicated affordable developments or in private housing schemes, are designed to help people who cannot afford to buy a home on the open market.
Buyers must live in the house and if they sell up within 20 years a clawback must be paid to the local authority.
The clawback is based on the percentage discount you get when you buy your affordable home. If you decide to sell or remortgage your home, the local authority applies this percentage to the price you get for the sale.
Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council has 4,316 people on a waiting list for affordable housing and every quarter there have been another couple of hundred applicants, according to Bernie O'Reilly from the council's affordable housing section. New applicants are allocated space on the bottom of the list on a lottery basis.
Sadly, for many the chances of securing an affordable house are quite slim. Last year the council delivered 152 affordable houses. In 2008 the council hopes to provide 350.
Despite this there has been no fall off on the number of applicants in recent months, she said, with people clearly attracted to the big difference in price charged by the council compared to the open market, she said. The difference in price can be significant.
At Goatstown Close, a scheme built by the council itself in Dublin 14, two-bedroom houses are selling for €235,000. The council reckon that a similar home in the area would cost in the region of €560,000.
In South Dublin County Council, Mary Shaughnessy reports that the council's list of applicants is now around 3,000.
South Dublin provided over 200 homes last year and have legal agreements in place to deliver in the region of 500 homes this year.
Of the 3,000 on the waiting list in South Dublin only 500 earn €40,000 or more with the remainder earning below that figure.
"Even with prices on the open market dropping, the vast majority of people would not be able to service a mortgage and still depend on local authorities to supply houses at affordable prices," she said.
There are around 700 people on the affordable housing panel in Fingal County Council, according to its director of housing Dick Brady. The council expects to provide around 400 affordable units in 2008, none of which will cost over the €200,000 mark.
THE COST
BEACON SOUTH QUARTER - SANDYFORD, D18
One-bed units in Beacon are available for €250,000 to affordable buyers, compared to the market value of around €380,000. Two-bed duplex units cost €350,000, compared to the market value of up to €800,000.
ST EDMUND'S - PALMERSTON, D20
An average two-bedroom apartment at St Edmund's is selling for €235,000 under the affordable scheme, compared to the current market price of €320,000.
CARRICKMINES MANOR - CARRICKMINES, D18
Two-bedroom apartments in Carrickmines Manor are for sale to people on the affordable panel for €200,000-€250,000. The market value is around €470,000.
