The first homes in Dublin City Council’s flagship affordable purchase housing estate, Oscar Traynor Woods in Coolock, will finally open for applications on Tuesday morning with prices starting at €254,358.
The council had intended to start sales of the State-subsidised houses earlier this month but postponed the process amid concerns over the high cost of the homes aimed at low- and middle-income workers.
The council had advertised prices of up to €475,000 for a three-bed semi-detached house, which under the terms of the affordable housing scheme meant buyers could have incomes of just over €106,000 and qualify for the subsidised housing.
The scheme works by offering eligible buyers a discount on the market value with the State taking an equity stake in the home to reflect the discount given. While these higher-income buyers can still qualify for the scheme, the council has agreed to offer new lower prices to allow more buyers to qualify.
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However, to provide these greater discounts the council will own a considerably higher proportion of the home than previously intended, taking equity stakes of up to 28 per cent.
On Tuesday the first 16 houses will be available to buy out of a total of 172 affordable homes due to be built at Oscar Traynor Woods.
Four of these will be three-bedroom houses ranging in price from €360,931 for buyers with a minimum household income of €81,000 to €475,000 for buyers earning up to €106,875. On the open market these houses would be worth €500,000 at prices independently assessed in June and agreed by the council’s valuation office.
Eight two-bedroom houses will be available priced from €325,769 for those with incomes of €72,000 up to €427,500 for earners on €96,188. These homes have market values of €450,000.
Four one-bedroom “maisonettes” will also be available with prices starting at €254,358 for those with incomes of €56,000 and going up to €308,750 for buyers with incomes of €69,469. These homes have been valued at €325,000.
Applications will be open from 9am on Tuesday and will close on August 20th at 1pm. With just 16 homes available in this first sale, it is likely there will be more qualifying applicants than homes, so once eligibility has been established, the council will run a lottery to determine which buyers will be selected.
Eligibility information and details of how to apply to buy are available at affordablehomes.dublincity.ie/
The 16 homes are currently under construction by developer Glenveagh and are due for completion early next year, the council said. The entire estate will have a total of 835 homes, 40 per cent of which will be used for social housing, and 40 per cent for a cost rental scheme, along with 20 per cent affordable purchase homes. The estate is due for full completion by 2027.
The 17-hectare site, just to the east of the entrance to the port tunnel, was bought by the council in the 1980s. It was the subject of a number of proposed industrial, recreational and housing schemes, but despite it being surrounded by housing estates built in the 1970s and 1980s, none of the planned schemes ever came to fruition.
In early 2015 the council’s housing department produced a plan for the redevelopment of vacant council land, including Oscar Traynor Road, in what was its first major housing development programme since the property crash.
Councillors finally signed off on a deal with Glenveagh in November 2021.
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