Mortgage snag for affordable housing

AN AFFORDABLE housing scheme being operated by Dublin Docklands Development Authority (DDDA) has run into difficulties, as banks…

AN AFFORDABLE housing scheme being operated by Dublin Docklands Development Authority (DDDA) has run into difficulties, as banks are not willing to provide mortgages on the basis of the shared ownership model being used.

DDDA has told prospective buyers that the delay in getting lenders to sign up to the scheme is due to the credit crunch, which "makes the lenders cautious, so anything new to the market is researched thoroughly".

DDDA is retaining the first option to buy the 93 apartments at Longboat Quay, Forbes Quay, Butler's Court and Hanover Quay if the private purchaser sells during the first 20 years of their ownership. This is different to the clawback model that local authorities employ whereby a percentage of the sale price has to be paid to the local authority if the property is sold.

When initially offered properties, buyers were told the purchase process would take 12-16 weeks "for normal conveyancing".

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Some buyers were made offers as long ago as last October, however, and have still not been able to take ownership of their apartments.

Although Bank of Ireland, IIB Homeloans, EBS, First Active, Ulster Bank and EBS subsidiary Haven Mortgages provide mortgages to purchasers of affordable homes from Dublin City Council, only First Active is lending for the Docklands scheme.

This week First Active signed up to provide a maximum loan of 92 per cent of the purchase price of the properties.

Buyers who spoke to The Irish Times this week said they had understood that they would be able to avail of 100 per cent mortgages.

The First Active threshold of 92 per cent means buyers will have to come up with a payment of more than €20,000 to secure their property - including solicitors' fees and the first year's management fees.

A spokesman for DDDA said "this level of rate is common in many affordable housing schemes across the country".

First Active confirmed it has signed up as a lender for the scheme and was offering a 92 per cent loan-to-value ratio. "We do offer 100 per cent LTV on certain other schemes offered by Dublin City Council," a spokeswoman said.

Buyers are also concerned that the value of apartments has fallen during the period finance for the scheme was being arranged.

The percentage that DDDA owns of the apartment is based on the price the buyer pays as a percentage of its market value at the time the scheme was launched - determined by the prices achieved from private buyers in the same developments.

According to the PermanentTSB house price index, the price of homes in the capital has fallen 2.7 per cent in the first four months of 2008.

Two-bedroom apartments in Forbes Quay are being offered for €225,000 and have a market value of €500,000 to €560,000, according to DDDA's promotional literature.

One-bed apartments in Longboat Quay are selling for €210,000 compared to a market value of €360,000-€415,000, while three-beds are priced at €245,000, but have been valued at €580,000-€610,000.

Offers are shortly to be made on another 100 apartments in five developments at Grand Canal Dock, the North Wall, Spencer Dock and Sir John Rogerson's Quay.

DDDA sent a "Frequently Asked Questions" sheet to potential purchasers at the beginning of the month in response to the queries it has been receiving. The document explains that DDDA is introducing a new type of scheme so that the apartments can be re-offered to people on the Affordable Housing List if they are sold by the initial owners within 20 years. After 20 years, the buyer owns the property outright.

A letter sent to buyers in May conceded that, because the scheme is "new and different" from that employed by local authorities, it had "taken longer than was hoped for" to get lenders to sign up.

Although the scheme is being operated by DDDA, potential buyers applied to Dublin City Council and were selected by the local authority. This seems to have led to confusion among buyers, who believed the same terms and conditions which attach to Dublin City Council schemes would apply.

"All applicants were provided with extensive information in relation to how the Affordable Housing scheme works, including a detailed QA document before they made their decision to purchase," said the DDDA spokesman. "Applicants who decide not to take up the opportunity of an affordable housing property in the Docklands do not fall off the Dublin City Council list."