New Government, New Housing Minister & New Social Housing for Wicklow

When asked during an exit poll back in February, over 25 percent of voters stated that housing was the number one topic on their minds when deciding how to cast their vote. Of course, if that same question was asked to the same cohort of people today, the priorities might be slightly different.

Only a few short weeks before the full impact of Covid-19 was felt across the country, issues such as homeless, social housing and the affordability of housing in Ireland were dominating the political conversation. Then Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy, was considered to be something of a “lightning rod for criticism”, according to Paul Hosford, writing in the Irish Examiner and this is reportedly one of the motivating factors for Fianna Fail pushing for the coalition. They wanted the Housing brief. And now they have it.

Previously FF spokesman for housing, Darragh O’Brien, is our newly-appointed Minister for Housing, and it is fair to say that he got off to a running start. Last week he spoke to national media about his ambitions and intentions to double social and affordable housing delivery. There is much to be skeptical about, but now is not the time for that. The reality is that the new Minister is facing enormous challenges as construction activity and new housing outputs have fallen significantly since the start of the pandemic. Latest figures suggest a drop in productivity levels for the industry of 38 percent, which is the worst in the EU.

The Minister has pledged to deliver affordable housing on state-owned lands, defining ‘affordable’ as a purchase price between €160,000 and €250,000, however, already we have seen the signs of infighting and political resistance. One major problem stands in his way that must first be solved; during the shutdown, many people have been out of a job and eviction notices could not be issued. There is a very real fear – and a very real possibility – that once the ban on evictions expires and back-rent is due, there may well be an avalanche of evictions. It has been touted that, if such an avalanche appears, landlords might have to bear the brunt of this.

Professor Michelle Norris of the School of Public Policy at UCD has predicted that the new Housing Minister could be in for a “quick win” in tackling homelessness should there be increased funding within the Housing First plan. This could lead to homes being purchased by local authorities for homeless people without going through hostels, hotels or short-term accommodation, which is a welcome move. The Housing First approach has already proven successful in a number of countries with affordability issues similar to those seen in Ireland’s urban centres.

Affordable Housing

Minister O’Brien has reaffirmed his ambitions that affordable homes will be built on state-owned land. While details of the scheme are still light, it is likely that developers will pay the full development cost of the land, while the State will support buyers purchasing a home for €160,000 to €250,000 on a shared equity basis. Homeowners will then make repayments to the State, either by installment or upon sale or transfer of the home.

Social Housing Update from the Castlehaven Finance Team

Castlehaven Finance has provided development funding services to over 30 social housing schemes across Ireland to date and our team members are currently supporting 15 live social housing developments.

We recently financed the construction of 33 homes at Bollarney Woods on the outskirts of Wicklow Town, which will be delivered as much-needed social housing by Wicklow County Council.  Most of these homes have now been handed over, despite serious disruption over the past few months. It was a great collaborative effort by the project delivery parters.

The project delivery partners for Bollarney Woods are: 

• Developer: Timulex Limited

• Architect:  Ferreira Architects

• Contractor:  ASB Construction Limited

•  M&E Engineering:  Fallon Design

• Structural Engineer: Garland Consulting Engineers

• QS: Conway McBeth