Fears that buyers from ‘surrounding counties' will come to Wexford for new affordable housing scheme
Located in Ard Uisce in Wexford town and the Old Forge Road in Enniscorthy, the homes start from €250,000 for three-bed semi-detached houses and €270,00 for four-bed semi-detached houses, with buyers able to get support through the Government's Help to Buy Scheme.
However, at the June meeting of WCC Sinn Féin councillor Tom Forde raised concerns about outside buyers coming to Wexford to purchase these properties.
'People who are newly resident in Wexford are entitled to apply for those and I'm wondering if we can set some form of limit on it, whether it be two years or three years, to prevent people coming in from surrounding counties,' he said. 'It would be great if we could prioritise those who are living long-term in the county. Is there a minimum time period where someone has to be resident in Wexford?'
After chief executive Eddie Taaffe advised that the properties would be sold on a 'first come, first served' basis, director of services Carolyne Godkin said such a system would prevent people originally from the county from returning home, adding that the biggest challenge for buyers was 'being mortgage ready' prior to purchase.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Times
8 hours ago
- Irish Times
Rent reforms: Coalition's big cure for rental market somewhat diluted by mixed messages
Story of the Week The Government presented it as a coup, something that came as a surprise to the Opposition, that would remove any basis for attack. For weeks, there were rumours that the rent pressure zones (RPZs) were about to come a cropper, and the Government was going to scrap, or seriously curtail their use, in a bid to attract big finance to reboot the construction of apartment blocks, which has been moribund for many months. And yes, the news that the RPZs were being extended across the State did serve to blunt Opposition attacks. After all, has the Opposition not been calling for months to save them? And applying them everywhere made sense, given that 24 of the 31 councils, and 111 of the 166 local electoral areas, were already in RPZ zones. Curbing the 'no-fault' notice to quit was also a smart move in heading off the Opposition. READ MORE It was the subsequent policy announcement that was to prove more tricky. The new distinction between small and corporate landlords. The fact that there will be different rules for new tenancies in the future, which will be set at market rate, with increases measured against inflation. The right of landlords to reset rent after six years. Those new rules were designed to attract institutional investors back to the Irish market. They wish to have predictable returns on their investment, and it is clear that RPZ was a big impediment for at least some of those. It's clear that the purpose of the change was to strike a balance between protecting the rights of tenants (already paying painfully high rent) and those of investors who are badly needed to to be part of the solution. The policy, or the communication of it, was not thought through, however. When detailed questions were asked, there were conflicting and ambiguous answers coming from different Ministers. Would existing tenants in RPZ be subject to that six-year rent review? It took a day for that to be clarified, with the Opposition claiming some hasty revision took place. Would announcing the start date of March 2026 encourage landlords to hold off renting properties and then benefit from higher rents from next year? James Browne ended up taking some flak. He's not the world's best communicator but he's a doer. That said, it's going to take a long time before we know if this measure will make any difference. Elsewhere, Stephen Collins is writing about the tortuously slow pace of any development or project in Ireland . He adjudges this to be a hard decision. Time will tell on that. But many more hard decisions need to be taken to bridge that yawning gap between supply and demand. Bust up The first item on the agenda of any Irish political party is the split. And the smaller and more marginal the party, the bigger the chasm. Our colleague Ronan McGreevy brought us this intriguing report this week about 30 activists leaving People Before Profit because – wait for it – it had become too mainstream and establishment. The walkout has been led by Dublin city councillor Madeleine Johansson. There was some jaw-dropping rhetoric in it. The 'fake democracy of the Dáil' should be replaced by a 32-county workers' republic. 'Assemblies of workers in workplaces and communities elect delegates, who are recallable, to a workers' national assembly.' Wow. To effect, one working-class revolution is required involving mass protests and strikes leading to workplace occupations and a challenge to the old State. Democracy in action? Well, not quite. One of the bases of the objection is that PBP would consider joining that bastion of the establishment, Sinn Féin, in Government. To quote the statement, a Sinn Féin-led government would 'coalesce with the establishment and leave untouched the real government, the permanent government – the State bureaucracy, army chiefs and head Guards'. That's what you call sweeping changes. Not that Paul Murphy is overly concerned right now, having been detained in Egypt while on the Great March to Rafah. That's all very well but does any of this affect me? It happened so long ago, 36 years ago, in 1989, that it seems historical. But the circumstances of the murder of Belfast solicitor Pat Finucane by loyalist gunmen have suppurated like a wound for more than three decades. Today's announcement by the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Hilary Benn, is a big moment. He confirmed the independent chair and assessors for the public inquiry into the murder of Mr Finucane. And so it is important. As Taoiseach Micheál Martin said in a statement: 'This is the final outstanding inquiry from those that were recommended by Judge Cory in 2004, and it is positive that it can now move to beginning its important and substantive work. 'Today's announcement highlights the importance that a way forward is found to comprehensively address all the outstanding cases of the Troubles.' Banana skin The National Shared Services Office (NSSO) is usually a backwater for news stories but on Tuesday all that changed when Minister for Public Expenditure Jack Chambers held an unexpected media conference. As Cormac McQuinn reported, pension payment calculations for some Ministers, including current serving ones, might have been overstated, or understated, up to the tune of €30,000. It was also revealed that a pool of 13,000 retired civil servants who were on work-sharing arrangements are to have their pension deductions checked for underpayments. There is also an issue in relation to the pensions of 30 retired senior civil servants. One of them could owe as much as €280,000 as a result of NSSO errors. Now the Public Accounts Committee is taking an interest in it. This could get very sticky for the NSSO. Winners and losers Winner: James Browne, for pushing through a hard political decision. Loser: James Browne, for failing to communicate clearly enough what it did and did not do. The Big Read Pat Leahy and Jack Horgan-Jones are examining in detail the background and the implications of this week's big RPZ announcement. Ellen Coyne has an interview with a grieving mother who has serious questions for Children's Health Ireland. And, of course, Miriam Lord's Saturday column. Hear here Friday's Inside Politics podcast looks at Minister for Housing James Browne's announcement of plans to change the rules around rent pressure zones (RPZs). Will the Government's gamble on investment pay off? And why was the roll-out so haphazard?
The Irish Sun
9 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
‘Shambles' rent reforms move blasted as Govt accused of ‘making it up as they go along' amid landlord price hike fears
THE Government's rent reforms have again come under heavy fire after no Dail time was scheduled for the emergency legislation next week. The decision, which was heavily blasted, was made despite claims that landlords will jack up prices before the regulations change. 2 The Government has been accused of 'making it up as they go along' Credit: Getty Images - Getty Part of the plan will see the two per cent cap on However, there are fears that landlords in the 11 counties that are currently not designated rent pressure zones will pump up their prices before the Following this criticism, the Government announced that they were introducing the new rent reforms in two separate pieces of legislation with the rent pressure zone extension to be dealt with in an emergency bill as soon as possible. READ MORE IN NEWS Coalition leaders denied claims that they were caught out by the blunder with Tanaiste However, the Labour housing spokesman Conor Sheehan claimed the Government were 'making it up as they go along' with rental reforms that he labelled 'a shambles.' He said: 'It's crazy that in an effort to calm the horses the Tánaiste was clearly making it up as he went along to avoid the ire of the Opposition. Most read in Irish News 'Well, I have news for him and for the Housing Minister, their disastrous treatment of renters will not be forgotten for a very long time.' Sinn Fein chief whip Padraig MacLochlainn said: 'The failure to include legislation for next week's Dail business demonstrates once again the shambles at the heart of the government's housing policy.' Sinn Fein housing spokesman Eoin O Broin reacts to record number of homeless people Housing Minister James Browne today defended his rental reforms and claimed that 'there were a few moving parts' to the legislation. He said: 'There's always going to be a challenge around the complexity of doing anything like this, there's no one size fits all to bring a solution to this kind of complex situation.' The Irish Property Owners Association today also took aim at the Government rental reforms as they claimed the changes could hit house prices and damage tourism. The IPOA also claimed that landlords who currently have vacant properties are enticed to keep their property empty until the new changes kick in on March 1 next year when they will be able to rise their rents to market level. 2 The Government's big rental reform strategy was launched this week Credit: Getty Images - Getty
Irish Independent
14 hours ago
- Irish Independent
New Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann 2025 app will provide real-time information throughout festival
Local family-run business WexApp has partnered with the Wexford Fleadh Executive Committee to provide the official app which also aims to promote local businesses, with information on the best places to eat, drink and sleep while in Wexford, along with detailed maps and directions showing how to get around. Essentially, the app aims to provide a 'one stop shop' to find out all that is happening during the week of the Fleadh and local businesses are encouraged to register their listing on the app at no cost. For more details, visit 'Our challenge was to build a comprehensive digital solution that would enhance the festival experience for attendees while providing powerful management tools for organisers,' Gareth Williams of WexApp explained. 'We're really proud to be the official app provider for Comhaltas Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann 2025.' Chair of the Wexford Fleadh Executive Committee Eddie Taaffe is delighted with the finished product. 'Wexapp has created a digital experience that perfectly complements the traditional nature of our festival, making it accessible whether or not you are a tech-savvy attendee,' he said. 'The app will make life much easier for all Fleadh visitors.' 'We encourage people to download the App before they arrive to the Fleadh so that they can get an idea of what is happening and where things are located.' For more information, visit and
