Affordable House

laurak265

Hi All,

I applied for an affordable house just two months ago. The council rang me yesterday to say they were dishing new ones out and would i like to be assessed! Of course i said yes. I'm a single mother and the house would be a leap from home for me and my boy! I'm just a bit worried...I have been provisionally approved for the mortgage by ebs which is great but my problem is the cost isn't just the mortgage repayments!!! There is ebs, gas, bins, sky tv, grocery shopping, clothes and shoes and i have to have a night out somewhere! Has anyone done this and maybe give me some advice to put me at ease!


I applied for the house thinking that it wouldn't come up for a year or two! I haven't quite saved enough i don't think! I mightn't be offered the house in the end but if i am how will i buy furniture and bits and bobs

PS I'm only 24!

blah

Well I don't think a lot of first time buyers move into fully furnished houses! A friend of mine spent a year on inflatable furniture. Don't be surprised if you have to forego the sky tv, and shop in lidl/pennys, I'm sure plenty of people are in the same situation. Of course, I don't know any more about your personal situation than you've posted.

laurak265

Well i may buy proper beds for my child and table and chairs for his dinner! I also need a fridge and a washing machine! I have to to buy a tv full stop! Sky €22 a month won't be a problem! I think it would be easier on my own but i'm not on my own so i'll have to sort these things! Flooring in the house! I'll be living out of the buy and sell i think.

jimmycrackcorm

you can furnish a lot from the buy and sell. I had two cardboard boxes and a foam sofa for a year.

Weyhey

You are right - you do have to factor in all your bills, money to live on, possible interest rate increases, school money, emercency money etc when deciding on getting a mortgage.

If I were you I would go to my local community centre/citizens advice/money budgeting service and see if they may be able to show you how to work out what you can and can't afford and some budgeting advice.

You would have to save or borrow the money for furniture etc I presume or look on website or ads for decent second hand furniture for free or ask friends and family for anything they don't use or need.

laurak265

Thanks weyhey! I'll have a look for citizens info! Cheers

mrgaa1

also don't forget charity shops - some great stuff there

jackal

Is the payment going to take up more than 1/3 of your net income? If so, then you should get independent advice, as you are giving yourself very little room for error - i.e. an emergency or something. Affordable housing *should* mean an affordable repayment, but in a lot of examples I have seen its anything but. There will be no shortage of AH properties over the next few years, so dont feel like its now or never. Weigh it all up and if you can genuinely afford it, then it might be a runnner. Dont forget that if you do go for it, the 20 year clawback applies, so look at the property in the frame of mind of living there for 15 years plus.

laurak265

Thats a great idea mrgaa1! I have no problem with second hand stuff at the right price

John Mason

Freecycle and dublinwaste.ie ftw


you can get everything here for free, from tables and chairs to garden sheds.

there are always sofa's, fridge's, washing machines etc. even if they only last you 6 months it hasnt cost anything, i have got loads from it.

my cousin got a brand new double which was still in the plastic

laurak265

irishbird wrote: »

Freecycle and dublinwaste.ie ftw


you can get everything here for free, from tables and chairs to garden sheds.

there are always sofa's, fridge's, washing machines etc. even if they only last you 6 months it hasnt cost anything, i have got loads from it.

my cousin got a brand new double which was still in the plastic

Thanks for that! Thats fantastic...i think the bills i will be grand with its the furniture and carpets and appliances that i'm struggling with! This is great thanks people!

Oh has anyone ever been fairyhouse market? Is there much stuff there??

orchidsrpretty

Ikea is also great for nice cheap furniture. If you have a spare day to rent a van for about €80, you can get really nice stuff for very cheap. They have sofas for as little as £80! I was in a similar situation to you two years ago. I bought a house when I was 23, I didnt have a lot of savings, you can buy the big things first and then add to it bit by bit. It may take a year or two for the house to be "finished" but it will be alot kinder to your pocket:P

subway

just make sure you know what you are getting into.
just becuase its called affordable, doesnt mean it is.
over valuing the house is the big one. house valued at 400k, you get 25% discount so house is 300k. however many of the houses are selling for close to that new as the council goes by the 06 valuation.

the other one is the lack of "extras" the non-affordable house gets 20-30 k of extras such as flooring, kitchens etc. you move in and find that your heating system is basic and your kithcen has been removed.

now is the wrong time to buy a house if there is anything you can do to avoid it.
you can always avoid buying by renting a place instead, and dont let anyone tell you rent is dead money, its not. and in a falling market you will come out on top

id suggest a very long hard think about it and rent a nice place if you can.
dont ruch into anyhting

laurak265

Well i have seen the houses and the kitchens are in! The fireplace is also installed in the sittingroom. The garden is done and completely sounded by walls non of that fencing stuff! The grass is being cut every week by a gardener until the houses are occupied! Black wrought iron fences all around the front and the estate is fab with black lamp posts and well maintained! The 3 bed house were 410k for the public and my house is less than half that price :eek: My brother is a mortgage institute manager and his tongue is hanging out in excitment at this so i think its not a bad move. Just nervous as its a first time buy!

DJDC

The 3 bed house were 410k for the public and my house is less than half that price

That doesn't seem fair to me. This whole AH scheme seems to be getting out of control, with 50%+ plus of the population able to avail of it. It artificially keeps prices high for those above the income threshold. An own goal by the government if you ask me because young high earners are just going head abroad leaving the masses of single mothers, unemployed builders and corrupt politicians to save the dying economy.

laurak265

People queued for them houses for a week until there were offically launched!! :eek: Granted the AH are much smaller than the others but still have the same estate and same grandure about them! I think if people are stupid enough to pay that price then yeah the builder is right to roide them!! I personally wouldn't pay that for a 3 bed in an estate!!

jackal

laurak265 wrote: »

The 3 bed house were 410k for the public and my house is less than half that price :eek:

When were they 410? 2006?

Sounds like a massive discount.

laurak265

Yeah would have been 2006! AH only gettin dished out now cos of a retention delay!! They have been finished over a yr! They have to be valued in todays market so i suppose its better this yr for the buyer than last yr!

tomcollins97

laurak265 wrote: »

Hi All,

...I have been provisionally approved for the mortgage by ebs which is great but my problem is the cost isn't just the mortgage repayments!!! There is ebs, gas, bins, sky tv, grocery shopping, clothes and shoes and i have to have a night out somewhere!
I applied for the house thinking that it wouldn't come up for a year or two! I haven't quite saved enough i don't think! I mightn't be offered the house in the end but if i am how will i buy furniture and bits and bobs

PS I'm only 24!

You are really living up to the sterotype of young single mother - have a kid to get a house! Why do you need a three bed for just you & your son?
Sky TV - get real! That is a luxury. think about getting food & clothes for your kid first, scholl uniforms & books etc - the important stuff. No doubt you will complain every September that going back to school costs a fortune, even though you know it's been comming for a year!
Forgoe the sky TV, fancy clothes and shoes, too many expensive nights out and needless holidays & you and your son should be just fine.
Apologies if this sounds harsh, but I unfortunately earn too much for social housing and am paying a large mortgage. Both me & my partner work but cannot afford sky, lots of clothes & shoes. So to hear sigle mothers of 24 boasting about their cheap house & Sky TV is very very annoying! Coz its the rest of us that are paying.

Supercell

Is this in Charlesland by any chance?
Anyhow, I don't begrudge you your own gaff, noone was ever forced to buy a house at the crazy 2006 prices, they have no-one to blame but themselves.
Your kid gets to grow up in a proper house with a garden to play in and will be a better person as a result of it.
Best of luck

Weyhey

tomcollins97 wrote: »

You are really living up to the sterotype of young single mother - have a kid to get a house! Why do you need a three bed for just you & your son?
Sky TV - get real! That is a luxury. think about getting food & clothes for your kid first, scholl uniforms & books etc - the important stuff. No doubt you will complain every September that going back to school costs a fortune, even though you know it's been comming for a year!
Forgoe the sky TV, fancy clothes and shoes, too many expensive nights out and needless holidays & you and your son should be just fine.
Apologies if this sounds harsh, but I unfortunately earn too much for social housing and am paying a large mortgage. Both me & my partner work but cannot afford sky, lots of clothes & shoes. So to hear sigle mothers of 24 boasting about their cheap house & Sky TV is very very annoying! Coz its the rest of us that are paying.

Yes it does sound harsh and nasty.

Laurak265 is asking for advice and never said she got pregnant to get a house. Or mentioned holidays or fancy clothes. Maybe Sky is her only regular luxury for herself - a fiver a week for entertainment for herself and her son is hardly extravagant.

I know its a miserable day and has a lot of people in grumpy form but blame the government rather Laurak for the AH earnings threshold.

seahorse

tomcollins97 wrote: »

...I unfortunately earn too much for social housing...

My heart bleeds for you...:rolleyes:

seahorse

laurak265 wrote: »

I think if people are stupid enough to pay that price then yeah the builder is right to roide them!!

So do I.

tomcollins97

tomcollins97 wrote: »

You are really living up to the sterotype of young single mother - have a kid to get a house!

She's not getting it for nothing.
It's an affordable house, she will have to pay a mortgage.
And even if she was getting it for nothing, who the hell are you to comment when you don't know her circumstances? How do you know she wasn't married and had her hubby run off/be unfortunate to end up with a loser who wouldn't support his child?

You CHOSE to pay a large mortgage. Get over it.

DJDC

You CHOSE to pay a large mortgage. Get over it.

What other choice did he have genius? Due to the fact he worked hard and earns a decent wage, he doesnt rely on the other people taxes to get him a house. You're welfare dependent attitude is sickening.

laurak265

tomcollins97 wrote: »

You are really living up to the sterotype of young single mother - have a kid to get a house! Why do you need a three bed for just you & your son?
Sky TV - get real! That is a luxury. think about getting food & clothes for your kid first, scholl uniforms & books etc - the important stuff. No doubt you will complain every September that going back to school costs a fortune, even though you know it's been comming for a year!
Forgoe the sky TV, fancy clothes and shoes, too many expensive nights out and needless holidays & you and your son should be just fine.
Apologies if this sounds harsh, but I unfortunately earn too much for social housing and am paying a large mortgage. Both me & my partner work but cannot afford sky, lots of clothes & shoes. So to hear sigle mothers of 24 boasting about their cheap house & Sky TV is very very annoying! Coz its the rest of us that are paying.

Tom if i was really living up to the sterotypical single mother as you put it, then i wouldnt have a job, i'd be living off single parent benefits and i'd have a council house and a medical card! I have none of these things. I would never afford to buy a house in a normal scheme of things hence the AH. I'm am going to be paying a mortgage just like everyone else...it may not be as high as yours but it will still be a burden to me! My sky digital will be 24 euro a month for basic packages for my child! He loves animals and he loves the discovery channel so who am i not to encourage my childs kind nature and love of animals! I haven't been on a holiday since 2004 and i look like a milk bottle but thats a sacrafice i took to have my child! If i was actaully selfish i would have had and abortion and lived up my 20's!

I was in college the night before my child was born and i was getting up to go to work when i went into labour! I finished my college while on maternity leave and did my exams the weeks before returning to full time employment! My mother minds my child while i work and i pay her childcare rate! I do all this to instill values in my child! There is a picture of mammy in her cap and gown hanging on the wall! I have a job and hope to buy this house to show him how to achieve when he is older and i'm doing this so we can be our own little family and have our own happy home! I don't buy fancy clothes and never have..I do however buy good shoes for my child and im proud of that! His feet have to gets him through at least 70yrs of his life and hopefully longer fingers crossed so i don't deny i pay for good shoes for him! I'm in dunnes stores gear however and i don't deny it! I have already said i would furnish my home with second hand stuff just to get us off the ground so i hardy live and extravagent life!!!!!

Apologies everyone else for the rant but i hate ignorant people! I'm just trying to live a normal life like everyone else!!

laurak265

DJDC wrote: »

What other choice did he have genius? Due to the fact he worked hard and earns a decent wage, he doesnt rely on the other people taxes to get him a house. You're welfare dependent attitude is sickening.

Your taxes don't pay for it! The builder gets planning permission for his estate from the council in return for him building a certain no of affordable homes! They are smaller and less kitted out than the normal prices ones! They are then bought by the council and alotted to lower income people to enable them to get on the property ladder. That person then gets a mortgage and pays the council for the house! If the house is sold for profit then a percentage of that has to be paid to the council so that the initial purchaser doesn't make money off it. That percentage paid back to the council is money used to buy more house to help other people!

laurak265

Supercell wrote: »

Is this in Charlesland by any chance?
Anyhow, I don't begrudge you your own gaff, noone was ever forced to buy a house at the crazy 2006 prices, they have no-one to blame but themselves.
Your kid gets to grow up in a proper house with a garden to play in and will be a better person as a result of it.
Best of luck

No not charlesland. Cheers for the support

DJDC

DJDC wrote: »

What other choice did he have genius? Due to the fact he worked hard and earns a decent wage, he doesnt rely on the other people taxes to get him a house. You're welfare dependent attitude is sickening.

FYI I'm not on welfare.
I have a large mortgage which I work hard to pay. I just don't have a chip on both shoulders about it.
And I thank my lucky stars I don't need to rely on the state.

Any fool knows nobody HAS to get mortgaged to the hilt, ever heard of renting?

jam_mac_jam

you dont to justify being a single mother its not like you are getting it for free! what a ****ty thing to say that just because you are a single mum you shouldnt buy shoes or some other such ****e. If you want to buy a ten bedroom house for two people its no bodies business.

Be very careful that you can afford this and be very careful of the clawback, they may have been 410 at the peak of the market but there is no way that you are getting 50 per cent off, its not possible. I would find out what they are selling at in the open market, in a year or two you may be able to get similar without being involved in the AH scheme and no clawback. If you really like the area and can see it being some where you want to stay then take their hand off but if its somewhere you are only going to be for a few years then dont do it.

jam_mac_jam

tomcollins97 wrote: »

You are really living up to the sterotype of young single mother - have a kid to get a house! Why do you need a three bed for just you & your son?
Sky TV - get real! That is a luxury. think about getting food & clothes for your kid first, scholl uniforms & books etc - the important stuff. No doubt you will complain every September that going back to school costs a fortune, even though you know it's been comming for a year!
Forgoe the sky TV, fancy clothes and shoes, too many expensive nights out and needless holidays & you and your son should be just fine.
Apologies if this sounds harsh, but I unfortunately earn too much for social housing and am paying a large mortgage. Both me & my partner work but cannot afford sky, lots of clothes & shoes. So to hear sigle mothers of 24 boasting about their cheap house & Sky TV is very very annoying! Coz its the rest of us that are paying.

yeah working hard for herself and her family and buying houses god damn single mothers? Just so different from everyone else.

laurak265

jam_mac_jam wrote: »

you dont to justify being a single mother its not like you are getting it for free! what a ****ty thing to say that just because you are a single mum you shouldnt buy shoes or some other such ****e. If you want to buy a ten bedroom house for two people its no bodies business.

Be very careful that you can afford this and be very careful of the clawback, they may have been 410 at the peak of the market but there is no way that you are getting 50 per cent off, its not possible. I would find out what they are selling at in the open market, in a year or two you may be able to get similar without being involved in the AH scheme and no clawback. If you really like the area and can see it being some where you want to stay then take their hand off but if its somewhere you are only going to be for a few years then dont do it.

I don't know why its so cheap...its just the price the girl from the council said i would be paying. Thanks for the advice..i will think long and hard about this before i commit. Its something i really want to do but she also said i have the option of waiting til the next round. If i'm not completely confident then i will wait til the next round. Thanks to all for your support..has really helped me.:D

Supercell

Good on ya gal, feck the begrudgers, you sound like your head is screwed on.

I really don't understand Ireland sometimes, here is a girl thats working and supporting her kid and wants to better herself rather than just going on the dole and expecting handouts for doing feck all.

If Irish society wont help people like Laura than we are morally bankrupt and deserve to slump into a recession because we cant see above our own ostrich feathers.

jdivision

jam_mac_jam wrote: »

they may have been 410 at the peak of the market but there is no way that you are getting 50 per cent off

If the land was bought cheaply then it is. There's a certain developer who was getting more than E800k for houses on land near Malahide that had cost him E10k an acre. The three-bed affordable units released there were about e150k!! (albeit the affordable ones were sold about six years ago)

SkepticOne

Are records publicly available of what is paid to builders for affordable houses? My interest is in how "cost" is calculated. Should, for example, councils be responsible for inflated land prices paid by builders during the last few years?

Why are councils buying properties from builders that the builders can't sell on the open market? On the way up affordable houses were opposed by builders and very few were made available in the early years. Now on the way down, builders are only too happy to shift them onto councils who then further subsidise them.

At the same time, we should not, imo, begrudge people such as Laura taking advantage of a scheme. From an individual point of view you would have to be mad to pay some of the prices ordinary punters are looking for their properties. Perhaps they bought at the top of the market and now cannot afford to sell any lower due to negative equity. Better to go for an affordable house even if the main purpose is to dig out builders.

The_Conductor

Unfortunately I think the Affordable Housing Scheme really is just about the only thing propping up the property market at present. As a previous poster put it- on the way up builders were vehemently opposed to the AH scheme, but on the way down they are only too happy to offload the units onto the councils at inflated prices. Whether you like it or not- the taxpayer is subsidising even the AH prices of the units- along with making it far more difficult for those who have to buy outside of the affordable schemes (all 3) to actually manage to do so.

Surely the fact that just shy of 58% of the adult population of Ireland qualifies for assistance in one or the other of the AH schemes, signifies the sheer lunacy of the schemes, and the total and utter delusions that we are all living under?

It will be very interesting to see what the proposals are in the forthcoming budget- particularly given the pleased comments eminating from the Construction Industry Federation.

With no disrespect to the OP- if the price you are paying under the AH scheme is 50% of what the 2006 price was for a larger unit- you are most probably getting it at approx 15-20% reduction on the open market selling price. The nominal price put on the unit by the council is balloney. If you read several threads on this forum by other people buying Affordable Houses- its actually the norm to have the property revalued to reflect current prices- do not accept the initial value put on it (but when querying this, you should note that while you are accepting the property, you do not accept the valuation put on it).

A far bigger problem that Affordable Housing, and one which is unlikely to be tackled in the budget, is the vast number of apartments purchased by people desperate to get "on the property ladder" over the past few years. In a large number of cases these units are wholly unsuitable, along with being wholly unsaleable in the current market. While I don´t suggest these folk should be bailed out en-mass, unfortunately- how do you make a distinction between the 58.2% of the population who qualify for the AH schemes, and the other 16% who are in totally unsuitable accommodation?

Its tempting to suggest to line up the politicians and shoot the lot of them en-mass, particularly since all of this was forecast in the 4 Bacon reports (since 1995)- I certainly don´t have an answer- but borrowing yet more money to try to bale out the bankrupt construction sector- lunacy, if you ask me.......

If the government has a coherent plan of action on what it intends to do- why have we, the electorate, not been made aware of it?

S.

byte

Do councils buy houses for use as Affordable Housing?

We bought ours directly off the developer, with little input from the CoCo (apart from allocating us a house). In fact, it was one of the conditions on the developers getting PP in the first place.

astrofool

I've been told that affordable housing is a percentage of every new development that has to be set aside for affordable housing (~10%), and it's part of the planning permission. The developer is able to buy their way out of it, or swap houses between developments.

In effect the cost on these units pushes the other units in the development up by 10%.

Reading here, there seems to be widely differing opinions as to how this works, without anything official backing it up, and then you end up with people comparing it to social housing based on hear'say.

So, does anyone have the official story, with proof to back it up with?

playtara

im a single mother to and i was on the waiting list 8yrs for council house,was living in mobile home for3yrs and never got offered a house i was assessed loads of times and told i was high on the list. i got a house before christmas but not from the council i think its a joke leaving people wait so long. just dont be expecting one soon.

The_Conductor

playtara wrote: »

im a single mother to and i was on the waiting list 8yrs for council house,was living in mobile home for3yrs and never got offered a house i was assessed loads of times and told i was high on the list. i got a house before christmas but not from the council i think its a joke leaving people wait so long. just dont be expecting one soon.

Playtara- with all due respect, the OP and everyone else here is talking about the Affordable Housing scheme (AH)- not social housing provided by councils etc. If you are unhappy about how council allocations of housing or the social housing schemes work- please start a new thread.

The_Conductor

astrofool wrote: »

I've been told that affordable housing is a percentage of every new development that has to be set aside for affordable housing (~10%), and it's part of the planning permission. The developer is able to buy their way out of it, or swap houses between developments.

In effect the cost on these units pushes the other units in the development up by 10%.

Reading here, there seems to be widely differing opinions as to how this works, without anything official backing it up, and then you end up with people comparing it to social housing based on hear'say.

So, does anyone have the official story, with proof to back it up with?

Social Housing is a percentage of every new development (not affordable housing). Developers may elect to donate a sum to the council in lieu of this obligation (though this has been massively abused by developers over the past few years and is probably going to be terminated in the ongoing review at present).

Affordable Housing is part financed by local councils. Properties are subsidised by councils to allow lower income people who would not otherwise have qualified financially, to purchase them.

The reason for so much confusion is that the schemes have been interpreted in over 20 different ways by the different councils around the country. Indeed the Affordable Housing Scheme itself has been abused in some situations to assist particular developers (Galway Co.Co. were severly reprimanded over this last May).

In some recent cases councils have included the provision of Affordable Housing (as oppossed to Social Housing) in the articles of planning permissions. In these instances the council agrees to pay the developer a set sum for the properties, the balance being paid by the person partaking in the AH scheme. Some councils run this programme themselves (Wicklow Co.Co. for example) others offload the administration onto the developer themselves (Laois and Offaly Co.Co.s for example).

AH is subsidised by the County Councils- irrespective of the mechanism, it is subsidised. Social Housing is a statutory obligation placed on the developer under law and is a different measure entirely. Social Houses obviously are cross subsidised by charging a higher margin on the regular houses in a development- Affordable Houses are not, as the developer is getting his pound of flesh come what may.

It makes very good sense for any purchaser of Affordable Housing to ensure that the valuation placed on their new home is the current open market valuation- and not some weird 2006 valuation that bears no semblence to what they would sell for tomorrow if he had to sell them. There are two benefits to this- 1. You´re saving the taxpayer money and 2. The Percentage reduction on the OMSP that you are being given by the council will obviously be a lot lower (so if you do sell it down the road- the clawback to the council will obviously be less than it would otherwise be).

S.

playtara

im just saying she mite be waiting longer than she thinks.....

subway

astrofool wrote: »

I've been told that affordable housing is a percentage of every new development that has to be set aside for affordable housing (~10%), and it's part of the planning permission. The developer is able to buy their way out of it, or swap houses between developments.

In effect the cost on these units pushes the other units in the development up by 10%.

Reading here, there seems to be widely differing opinions as to how this works, without anything official backing it up, and then you end up with people comparing it to social housing based on hear'say.

So, does anyone have the official story, with proof to back it up with?

both, some are given to the council at cost and some are bought by the council:
the 1999 piece also allows the council to pay a subsidy directly to developer if needed, rather than build their own houses.

http://www.environ.ie/en/DevelopmentandHousing/Housing/HomeOwnership/AffordableHousing/

1999 Affordable Housing Scheme
Under the 1999 affordable housing scheme, local authorities provide newly built houses at a discounted price on their own lands. A site subsidy of up to €50,000 a house is available from the Department for the City Councils and the Dublin local authorities and €31,800 in other local authorities to assist them in making houses affordable. The purchaser can also benefit from a loan of up to 97% of the house price

and then there is

Part V of the Planning and Development Acts 2000-2006
Part V of the Planning and Development Acts 2000 - 2006 requires, inter alia, that up to 20% of land zoned for residential developments or for a mix of residential and other uses, is to be reserved to meet social and affordable housing needs and be made available to the local authority at the existing use value rather than development value. Part V applies only to planning permissions for developments of 5 or more houses on zoned land of 0.1 hectares or more. It does not apply to developments by voluntary housing bodies, or to one-off housing.

The_Conductor

playtara wrote: »

im just saying she mite be waiting longer than she thinks.....

The assessments and waiting times for the Affordable Housing schemes and the Social Housing schemes are entirely different matters. I agree- she might be waiting a little longer than she might anticipate, but the example that you posted relates your experiences with an entirely different scheme, and is not relevant to the OPs situation.

S.

subway

and to the OP, if its the right house for you then good luck with it
my earlier point about the valuation was that the 50% discount might be less if the value of the house has dropped. it will affect your clawback if you ever need to sell up

laurak265

Thanks everyone for all your help! I have to look into the claw back to make i fully understand. I'm not sure if i'll make it this round but at least i will have gone through the process and will be some bit wiser next time.

thanks everyone i'll keep ye updated on what happens

byte

Best of luck with it.

jackal

People, if you have a problem with the Affordable Housing Scheme, please take it up with your T.D. If you think the OP personally is not getting a good deal, then say why.

Rants against the AH scheme should not be directed at the people offered Affordable Housing, and the bigoted comments about single mothers make any decent points you may throw in very easy to ignore.

tomcollins97

jam_mac_jam wrote: »

yeah working hard for herself and her family and buying houses god damn single mothers? Just so different from everyone else.

Working just as hard as everyone else but because of being a single mother getting a cheap house - I wish we were all as lucky & our main worry was not being able to afford sky! The rest of the taxpayers are covering the cost of this 'affordable' housing

tomcollins97

Deleted User wrote: »

She's not getting it for nothing.
It's an affordable house, she will have to pay a mortgage.
And even if she was getting it for nothing, who the hell are you to comment when you don't know her circumstances? How do you know she wasn't married and had her hubby run off/be unfortunate to end up with a loser who wouldn't support his child?

You CHOSE to pay a large mortgage. Get over it.

I CHOSE to put a roof over my head - and with Dublin prices so high the size of the mortgage isn't really a choice. We both looked at moving out of Dublin but jobs were not available in what we work at so we would need to retrain - not at option at this time.

As for 'who am I to comment' this is a discussion board, correct?

tomcollins97

laurak265 wrote: »

Your taxes don't pay for it! The builder gets planning permission for his estate from the council in return for him building a certain no of affordable homes! They are smaller and less kitted out than the normal prices ones! They are then bought by the council and alotted to lower income people to enable them to get on the property ladder. That person then gets a mortgage and pays the council for the house! If the house is sold for profit then a percentage of that has to be paid to the council so that the initial purchaser doesn't make money off it. That percentage paid back to the council is money used to buy more house to help other people!

How does the council get the money to buy the houses from the developer if it is not from taxes?