Home ownership “just a pipe dream for many” says O’Callaghan
Mike Finnerty 24 Jan 2024Social Democrats TD Cian O’Callaghan said that the latest residential property price index from the Central Statistics Office underpins what many already feel; owning a house in Dublin is “just a pipe dream for many.”
O’Callaghan, speaking in his role as party housing spokesperson, said “the cost of buying a home in Dublin has increased by over €65,000 since this Government took office. ”
“With the median price of a home in the capital now standing at a staggering €440,000, any hope of home ownership is becoming a pipedream for many.
“Teachers, nurses, gardaí and other workers are increasingly unlikely to be able to afford a place of their own.” The review, published by the Society of Chartered Surveyors yesterday, showed that a couple consisting of a garda and a nurse with ten years’ experience would have a maximum mortgage limit of €356,000.O’Callaghan noted this is “far short” of what is needed to buy a home in Dublin.
The Dublin Bay North TD said that the lack of affordable homes is having a “disastrous impact” on Ireland’s public services, and is a major factor in Ireland’s young people moving to Australia.He said that the housing crisis could be solved, and pointed to the work of the Ó Cualann Cohousing Alliance,
Their findings have shown that homes can be built and sold on a not-for-profit basis for far below the market rate.
“The State should be investing heavily in genuinely affordable housing using the Ó Cualann model. It is essential that we do not lock a generation out of home ownership because the Government have their heads buried in the sand.”