Owners of defective Celtic Tiger-era apartments believe it will take another 10 years for homes to be fixed
Owners of defective Celtic Tiger-era apartments expect it will take another 10 years for all of their homes to be repaired under a delayed €2.5bn state scheme.
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Irish Independent
a day ago
- Irish Independent
Owners of defective Celtic Tiger-era apartments believe it will take another 10 years for homes to be fixed
Owners of defective Celtic Tiger-era apartments expect it will take another 10 years for all of their homes to be repaired under a delayed €2.5bn state scheme.
Extra.ie
7 days ago
- Extra.ie
'Cheap' shoebox flats: Plans to reverse building regs revealed
The Government is set to give the green light to controversial new proposals to reverse building regulations so as to make apartment developments 'much cheaper to build'. There are concerns of a backlash over a move that critics will say marks a return to the controversial Celtic Tiger-era 'shoebox' apartments. However, changes to building specification requirements are considered a necessary move to deliver the Coalition's pre-election promises to significantly increase the construction of new homes. The Government is set to give the green light to controversial new proposals to reverse building regulations so as to make apartment developments 'much cheaper to build'. Pic: Shutterstock One Cabinet minister told 'We are going to bring in changes very soon on all the requirements for these apartment developments, which we believe will make these developments a lot cheaper to build. 'The requirements – on minimum apartment sizes, on aspects of the buildings, on lift provisions and all that – were understandably introduced after the standard of building fell significantly during the boom. And some apartment developments had unacceptably small apartments. 'But the minimum size requirement is higher here than most other countries in Europe and there is a feeling it has gone too far in the way it inhibits developers. We are more interested in restricting aspects like excessive services requirements, provision of a certain type of lift etc.' There are concerns of a backlash over a move that critics will say marks a return to the controversial Celtic Tiger-era 'shoebox' apartments. Pic: Shutterstock The U-turn on building rules introduced after the property crash comes as the Coalition is under intense pressure to significantly increase the number of new homes across the country. This week the Coalition announced a series of reforms it hopes will entice more investors, deliver more homes and cause rents to fall over the coming years. However, behind the scenes there are fears the new measures represent only the tip of the iceberg of what is needed to deal with the housing crisis. Embattled Housing Minister James Browne has already admitted the Coalition will struggle to meet its target of delivering 41,000 new homes this year. Housing Minister James Browne. Pic: Gareth Chaney/Collins Photos Industry sources this weekend predicted, based on trends in the first half of the year, that the actual number could be 'significantly lower' than 25,000. One senior source told 'Far from seeing an increase in building, it is actually in reverse this year. There is chaos everywhere. Everyone – the banks, local authorities, credit providers – is pulling back. There's no cash, no commitment, no certainty. We were going at a good pace last year, but everything is frozen over now. 'Builders are closing out schemes they already had. They'd been doing that for two years – that's why the figures were so vibrant. But now they're resiling from the market… Month after month the numbers are falling.' Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael were returned to power after promising to deliver 300,000 new homes over the lifetime of the government. But just days before the new administration took office in January, Central Statistics Office figures revealed claims made by former housing minister Darragh O'Brien that 40,000 new builds would be delivered last year were almost 10,000 short. Former Housing Minister Darragh O'Brien. Pic: Conor Ó Mearáin/Collins Photo Agency The same month, Sherry FitzGerald Residential & Advisory managing director Marian Finnegan told a house-building summit that the figure for 2025 would be 'at a margin of plus or minus 10%' of 25,000. Recent months have seen a rising panic within the Coalition about a significant drop in new-build commencements and also about Mr Browne's performance. The failure to get to grips with the unprecedented accommodation shortage has fractured Coalition relations. Senior Fine Gael sources this weekend told the MoS that Mr Browne has six months to show discernible progress. One minister said: 'He is running out of time. He was given a political hospital pass [in being appointed to replace Darragh O'Brien at short notice]. We understand that, but time moves on. If, in the autumn, the thing is still a mess, we will be at a crossroads. How long has Browne? He has until the second half of the year. If is not working by then he will have to move, or Fine Gael will have to move,' they said. Tánaiste and Fine Gael leader Simon Harris. Pic: Leah Farrell/ Another senior Government source added: '[Tánaiste and Fine Gael leader Simon] Harris will have no choice. 'If he does not move for Browne, then people will start to think 'maybe you should go instead'. The ides of November could be very dangerous: a bad presidential election, stagnant housing figures… it could get turbulent. 'The reality is, the narrative is beginning to set and it is not a good one for this Government. 'It is one of 'here's their third attempt and everything is still getting worse'. The voters are moving towards the view that it is now time for change.' The importance of the November deadline was underlined by another senior Coalition figure, who warned: 'The reality is the shutter comes down on this Government by November on housing. 'It takes four years for real change to kick in. If the tide has not turned by November, after the Budget and the new National Development Plan, then it won't change in time for us.' Another Fine Gael source commented: 'If we hit November and we are still not turning, he [Browne] is out of a job, and we will be out next time.' Mr Browne still has support within Fianna Fáil. Junior Justice Minister Niall Collins. Pic: Gareth Chaney/Collins Photos Defending his party colleague, Junior Justice Minister Niall Collins told the MoS: 'James Browne is an experienced local and national politician. 'He has far more practical knowledge than these academic theoreticians of the Social Democrats like Rory Hearne.' However, some senior Fianna Fáil figures expressed concern at Mr Browne's ability to tell his party leader, Taoiseach Micheál Martin, and Public Expenditure Minister Jack Chambers – who heads a new task force set up to oversee major development projects – to 'butt out of housing policy and let him run the department'. One Fianna Fáil minister said: 'The problem James Browne has is that the Department of Public Expenditure and his own Department of Housing don't want to spend a penny on anything. 'He has to win that war, and that won't be easy.'
Irish Examiner
27-05-2025
- Irish Examiner
100% mortgages would drive up house prices, Central Bank warns
Celtic Tiger-era 100% mortgages would drive up house prices and increase risks to borrowers and banks, the Central Bank has warned. Mark Cassidy, the Central Bank's director of financial stability, warned TDs and senators at the Oireachtas housing committee against the return of 100% mortgages. 'We think that would be a bad idea,' Mr Cassidy said. It would add to demand without any impact on supply and therefore add to prices. 'More fundamentally, it increases the risk for borrowers and for banks.' Banks introduced 100% mortgages during the Celtic Tiger period, but more recent Central Bank rules do not allow either 100% or 95% mortgages to be given out. Current rules require borrowers to have a 10% deposit in order to obtain a mortgage. Mr Cassidy said reintroducing 100% mortgages would increase the risk of default, if a household's income fell. He added that, if house prices fall, homeowners would immediately fall into negative equity and would be likely to 'get into financial distress'. 'We believe a minimum of a 10% deposit remains necessary for either first time borrowers or existing borrowers,' he added. 'We would be confident that 100% mortgages are overly risky, both from the perspective of the borrower and the perspective of the bank.' The matter was raised by a number of TDs and senators during the meeting, who questioned whether it would be possible to allow for the reintroduction of 100% mortgage products. It comes as Independent Ireland has called for the reintroduction of 100% mortgages, saying that many tenants are able to pay more in rent than they would need for monthly mortgage repayments. The Central Bank was also critical of Government plans to consider expanding the First Home shared equity scheme to second-hand homes. Robert Kelly, the Central Bank's director of economics and statistics, warned against the measure. 'The challenge in front of us, it's mainly supply. The current scheme works through pushing up demand and house prices, creating more additional funding for them to buy houses so it stimulates supply. 'I don't see how applying that to the second-hand housing market would achieve that. I think the net effect of that would be additional demand, which would likely feed its way into house prices as opposed to creating large amounts of supply.'
