Mortgage to rent scheme performance branded abysmal

An Offaly TD is seeking a “radical overhaul” of the mortgage-to-rent scheme after only two cases were completed in Offaly.

Deputy Barry Cowen has said figures reveal that just two cases have been completed in Offaly since the scheme’s launch in 2012.

“In theory, the mortgage-to-rent scheme exists to provide a safety net for families who are set to lose their home because of mortgage arrears,” explained Deputy Cowen. 

“Under the scheme, the family will lose the ownership of the home but will continue to live in it. Instead of paying a mortgage, the family will pay a rent to an approved housing body, such as a voluntary housing association,” he said.

“Figures supplied to me by the Minister for the Environment Alan Kelly show that just 88 mortgage-to-rent transactions have been fully completed nationwide, with two of those by Offaly County Council and three by Tipperary County Council. Against the backdrop of recently published data from the Central Bank showing that over 30,000 families may lose their home, this is a truly abysmal performance by the mortgage-to-rent scheme,” Deputy Cowen remarked.

“With thousands of repossession proceedings in the system, it is deeply concerning that the Government’s mortgage-to-rent scheme is failing miserably to provide a safety net for those in arrears facing the prospect of losing their home. The Government needs to urgently review the scheme, remove the unnecessary bureaucracy and complexity inherent in it, and make it workable,” he insisted.  

According to Deputy Cowen, “there is a lot of spin coming from the Government ahead of an expected announcement of measures relating to mortgage arrears and the personal insolvency service. As part of this announcement, the government needs to accept the mortgage-to-rent scheme as presently designed is simply not working and it must radically overhaul the scheme to make it fit for purpose.”