Budget 'fails to tackle key housing issues'

Wednesday, December 09, 2009 - 07:05 PM

Respond! Housing Association has said that today's Budget has "not gone far enough" to help families in arrears with excessive mortgages.

While the extension of the six-month moratorium is welcomed, the association maintain it will not help struggling families remain in their homes.

Aoife Walsh of Respond! said: "The introduction of the statutory mortgage code last February which first established the six-month moratorium has had little or no impact on the number of repossession cases coming before the courts. We fear worse is to come."

Respond! also maintains that the Government has failed to tackle the issue of negative equity.

The housing charity claims that the extension of mortgage interest relief does not help people deal with the massive gap that exists between their mortgage and the current market value of their home.

Ms Walsh said: "The ESRI has predicted that by the end of next year, 350,000 people in Ireland could be living in negative equity. For any of these people who need to sell their home, today's budget has not introduced any measures that would reduce the level of debt they owe.

"We saw in today's Budget that funding for social housing and supports is being cut by a massive 27% so the State will not be in a position to provide housing for families who lose their home through repossession."