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PROPOSALS AROUND CHANGING the tax treatment of institutional investors who purchase large sections of housing estates could be considered by government ministers as early as next week it seems.
Yesterday, The Journal reported that Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien has instructed his officials in the Department of Housing to look at the options available with a view to bringing changes as part of new Planning and Development legislation.
This could see the legislating for a specific ring-fencing of homes for first-time buyers as per the minister’s own 2019 Bill or possibly banning investment funds snapping up estates in their entirety outside of city centres.
It is understood that investment funds buying up housing estates will be “corrected”.
The Housing Minister as well as Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe are discussing the issues, and solutions should be ready “as soon as possible”.
Speaking in the Dáil this afternoon, Tánaiste Leo Varadkar that the government will take action on the issue “in the coming weeks”.
While the proposals might go to Cabinet next week, overnight changes are not being ruled out.
O’Brien told this website that it will be an “all of government approach” which means his Fine Gael colleagues will have to get on board, and with taxation falling into the lap of the finance minister, it will be interesting to see what tax loopholes being availed of by these investment funds might be on the chopping board.
“We do need to look at tax treatments in this space,” he said, something he repeated today on Ireland AM.
In what could be seen as putting pressure on Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe, O’Brien said there is only so much he can do with planning laws.
On Newstalk’s Pat Kenny radio programme the housing minister said the tax treatment of these funds is where things will be solved long term.
He confirmed that measures are being considered to stop investment funds buying up full housing estates “up to and including” an outright ban.
O’Brien commits to having proposals ready by next week when it comes to legislating for investment funds.
Leaders’ Questions
The housing crisis and the fallout from Round Hill Capital buying 135 homes at a new development in Maynooth, Co Kildare dominated today’s Leaders’ Questions.
Sinn Féin’s Pearse Doherty said that international funds buying up property in Ireland has been “happening for years” and that is has been “encouraged and incentivised” by government policy.
“You’ve created this situation for these international investment funds snapping up family homes, locking first-time buyers out off the market,” he said.
That is the reality, you’ve frustrated the hopes and dreams and aspirations of many workers and families who aspire to own their own homes.
He added: “Tánaiste will you, as Sinn Féin has argued for over the years, take away the tax breaks and advantages that you gave to these funds?”
In response, Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said that both he and government “strongly believe in the concept of homeownership” and the buyout in Maynooth “is not consistent with government policy”.
“As things stand at the moment less than 1% of the housing stock in Ireland is owned by investment funds, and that’s much lower than will be the case in most other developed countries,” Varadkar said.
“Their correct role is to finance the construction of developments, not to swoop in and buy housing estates or developments that are already substantially complete. That’s what we need to change and that’s what the government intends to change with the actions it’s going to take in the coming weeks.”
Social Democrats co-leader Róisín Shortall said that the government has “professed surprise” about global funds buying up homes when it’s been happening for some time.
“Since 2018 they have spent €4 billionn on residential property in this country. Did anyone in government even notice that Tánaiste,” she asked.
In response, Varadkar said that if the SocDems want “a ban on some forms of housing or some forms of housing investment….I think that would be a mistake.”
He latter added that the government does not want to introduce something that may have the unintended consequence of reducing the supply of housing.
“We want to avoid a reduction in supply by banning forms of private investments but I’m sure we can find a solution that gets the balance right. I can’t give you a timeline at the moment, but I know that Minister O’Brien and Minister Donohoe are treating this with urgency and we’d hope to have proposals very soon,” he said.
- With reporting by Rónán Duffy
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condolences to his family and friends look twice think bike. Not implying who was in the wrong but I know who came out the worse as is normally the case
@ter: I remember back in the day when i was on a motorbike in Dublin. Drivers just conciously donr see bikes. There needs to be a media flood of Think Bike. My own son is now on a Motorbike and Ive it drilled into him, mind drivers pulling out at junctions. They are looking for cars not bikes. Most just wont see you even though your lit up like an xmas tree.
@Carina Clarke: I went for a spin on the back of a friends motorbike, in the distance of only four miles two cars pulled out in front of us, only my friend is so experienced on his bike and anticipated what the drivers were about to do we would have been involved in a collision.
Another tragedy :(… Condolences to family and friends. All drivers please take care with weather warnings..
“His moped collided with a car.” …How do you know this? The wording of these collisions needs to change. It’s like the most vulnerable road user is always to blame.
Just yesterday I was, as someone who cycles a bicycle, chatting with with a guy who drives a moped about the possible ice on the roads and the perilous journey home. He said, “They just don’t see us.”
@Brendan D’Arcy: Drove a motorbike for years, best advice I got was “its not that you’ll hit someone, they’ll hit you. They don’t see you”. Best advice I ever got, even with lights on and hi viz, you could look a driver in the eyes and they would still pull out in front of you.
@Barra O Brien: best advice I got while doing the bike lessons, treat every journey as if you are invisible. Every single car at every junction can’t see you
Driving motorbikes for 40+ years. Best mindset is to assume all drivers are complete idiots and will do the most unexpected thing. Anticipation is the only thing that keeps you alive on a bike no matter how much hi-vis you wear. Condolences to this poor guys family.
@Declan White: I think cyclist and motor bikers over estimate the visibility drivers have sometimes, not that there aren’t many bad drivers, but every day I see bikes sitting in blind spots and popping out of no where.
Just because you see the car, doesn’t mean the driver can see you.
@ED: I ride a bike and drive a van. I’m as likely to be unseen in my large white high-roofed Transit as I am on a bike. People don’t look! Nobody pops out of nowhere, we’re there all along, just unseen.
I live near here and have seen plenty of accidents over the years but this is sadly the first fatal one I’ve heard of. Traffic filters into that junction from 6 different roads. One slip in concentration or an inexperienced driver is all it takes. RIP.
Motorbikes are VERY dangerous……. “According to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), you are 37 times more likely to die in a motorcycle accident than a car accident – and nine times more likely to become injured while riding a motorcycle than while driving a car.”
@William Grogan: “become injured”??? That summs up the mentality. Injuries are caused.
Another one who thought is a hero on the street. Too much GTA played.
@Hubert Dworniok: the driver of car is now charged and appearing in court tomorrow morning. Moped driver was not in the wrong. If the motorcyclist in the was the wrong the car driver would not be charged with offences!
have your say