An allowance of up to €11,450 is payable over a 5 year period to tenants or tenant purchasers of local authority housing or tenants of houses provided under the voluntary housing Rental Subsidy Scheme to assist them to purchase or have a private house built with a mortgage.

How do I qualify?

• a local authority tenant or tenant purchaser who wishes to buy a private house and to return your present house to the local authority, or
• a tenant for more than one year of a house provided by a voluntary body under the Rental Subsidy Scheme who wishes to buy a private house and return your present house to the voluntary body, you may apply for a mortgage allowance.

Is the allowance a cash grant?

The allowance is linked to your repayments on the mortgage loan taken out to finance the purchase or building of your house. It is paid directly to the lending agency and results in your mortgage repayments in the first five years being reduced by the amount of the allowance.

To qualify for the allowance must I have a mortgage?

You must be financing the purchase or building of your house by means of a mortgage loan of at least €38,092.

Is the mortgage allowance payable if I avail of the Shared Ownership Scheme?

Shared Ownership is a separate means of facilitating access to home ownership in two or more stages by those who cannot afford full ownership in one step in the traditional way.

Can I choose any house I like?

You may buy a new or existing house or have a house built. The house being purchased or built must be suitable to your needs, meet certain minimum standards and be acceptable to the local authority.

How much is the allowance?

The allowance will normally come to a total of €11,450. It is paid directly to the lending agency and reduces your mortgage payments in each of the first five years as follows:

Year 1: €3,560.00

Year 2: €2,800.00

Year 3: €2,040.00

Year 4: €1,780.00

Year 5: €1,270.00

The allowance paid in any year cannot exceed the amount of the mortgage repayments. If for instance, your mortgage repayments in the first year came to €3,174, the allowance would be €3,174.

Generally, you will still have mortgage repayments to meet even taking into account the mortgage allowance.