Council to keep up pressure on social housing thresholds
Cllr Peter Flynn raised the issue.
Mayo County Council is to continue to put pressure on the Department of Housing to increase the thresholds for social housing.
The matter was raised at the council's Housing Strategic Policy Committee (SPC) where a decision was taken to send a second letter to the Department after an initial correspondence was simply acknowledged as having been received, with no further feedback.
SPC chairperson Cllr Peter Flynn said there is a discrepancy in the income threshold applied to social housing applicants in Galway versus those in Mayo, with applicants in Galway allowed to earn at least €5,000 more while still remaining eligible for social housing. Single people in Mayo have an income threshold of €30,000 against €35,000 for applicants in Galway.
“When you compare Mayo and Galway you see this discrepancy yet there is no explanation for it. This letter is just a wishy-washy response and they must explain why there is this discrepancy because even if they just equalised the thresholds for those people on the income limits, at least more would be eligible for social housing here.”
Cllr Flynn asked council management to send a second letter, which was supported by Cllr Michael Kilcoyne, who added: “And also express our disappointment that such a major issue does not receive the same priority as other things that would not be considered as serious.”
Meanwhile, a series of public presentations by Mayo County Council on affordable housing options proved very successful in recent months with hundreds of people participating. Three in-person sessions were held in September, two at Aras an Chontae in Castlebar and one at First Choice Credit Union, with representatives from the council, auctioneers, and mortgage advisors on hand to outline funding options for applicants.
A follow-up webinar on October 6th attracted 150 registrations and anyone interested in viewing the content can access the video on the council’s social media channels to discover how the scheme works. A council official said the campaign was about getting people ready for applying for affordable homes through the council’s online portal once it becomes live.
- Published as part of the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.
