The Affordable Housing Act 2021 was signed into law by the President on 21 July 2021. Commencement requires further ministerial order.
The Act is referred to by the Government as “the most comprehensive standalone affordable housing legislation in the history of the State” and does the following:
- Allows local authorities to build, acquire and make available homes at prices which are below open market levels;
- Introduces the shared equity scheme which is designed to help bridge the gap between the market value of a home in the private market and what an individual or couple can afford;
- Introduces the cost-rental letting model into Ireland; and
- Makes changes to Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000, most importantly amending the current 10% minimum requirement for social homes and increasing this to 20% for social and affordable homes.
The Act has yet to be published by the final version of the Bill can be found on the Oireachtas website.
For further information on this topic, please contact Aoife Smyth, Knowledge Lawyer or any member of A&L Goodbody’s Real Estate team.