Affordable housing: What is it?New houses and apartments at discounts of 30 to 50 per cent, reducing the purchase price by as much as 300,000. Most of the neighbours will have paid full price.
Who is eligible?Local authorities have various criteria. For most new affordable homes in the Dublin area, individuals or couples may have a maximum income of between 55,000 and 65,000 but this is flexible.
Dublin City Council allows couples to earn up to 100,000 combined for some schemes.
However, a maximum earning figure of 40,000 is used by many local authorities outside Dublin and, in some cases, for certain schemes in Dublin city. Dublin city has self-verification of financial details, while other local authorities ask for financial information to prove eligibility. See local authority websites for details.
How does it work?Read the booklet Your Affordable-Home Handbook, available from local authorities, the Affordable Homes Partnership and on the web at www.affordablehome.ie. Keep your options open. For example, in Dublin you can apply to all four local authorities for a single fee of 50. When housing becomes available, potential buyers are asked to tick off the schemes they are interested in and their names are then put into a computerised lottery draw.
How to get a mortgage?Start saving and talk to mortgage brokers, building societies and banks. Purchasing is a major decision and you must have enough income to meet your mortgage repayments after you have paid all your other costs.