Latest news with #housingSupport
Irish Times
15 hours ago
- Business
- Irish Times
More than 100 families in Dublin at risk of homelessness as tenant-in-situ applications paused
More than 100 families in Dublin are at risk of homelessness after Dublin City Council paused new applications to the tenant-in-situ scheme due to a lack of funding, council figures indicate. The scheme allows local authorities to buy properties where the tenants are facing eviction because the landlord is selling. It applies to tenants who have received a notice of termination, are deemed at risk of homelessness and who qualify for social housing support such as the Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) or the Rental Accommodation Scheme (RAS). New restrictions were applied to the scheme this year, including a stipulation that the home must be in the HAP or RAS system for at least two years. READ MORE There have also been lengthy delays in the issuing of Government funding to the scheme as Minister for Housing James Browne reviewed its terms. The council's head of housing Mick Mulhern told city councillors at the end of March that no confirmation of its funding allocation had been sent by the Department of Housing . [ Housing Minister James Browne: 'If we don't get this right over the next four to seven months, we're going to be in serious, serious trouble' Opens in new window ] At that point there were 104 applications to the council for access to the scheme. The council spent €117 million on 261 tenant-in-situ and 83 vacant property acquisitions in 2024. However, following an inquiry by Social Democrats TD Rory Hearne last week, the council confirmed in correspondence that 'the tenant-in-situ scheme is no longer operating' and that 'the funding has been withdrawn'. When asked to comment on the remarks, the council said: 'The acquisitions section have confirmed that the 2025 budget for the tenant-in-situ (TiS) scheme has been allocated, and that DCC will not be purchasing any further properties through the TiS scheme until 2026.' Mr Hearne said the decision was 'absolutely unacceptable' and would result in 'families and children being thrown into homelessness'. 'It also goes against the commitment made by Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael when they lifted the eviction ban in 2023 that they would provide protections for tenants through a tenant-in-situ scheme, and a supposedly renewed commitment made to the tenant-in-situ scheme this year,' Mr Hearne said. Asked to comment on the correspondence received by Mr Hearne, a spokesman for the council said it had been allocated €95 million for the entire 2025 acquisitions programme. This covers the Buy and Renew Scheme, second-hand acquisitions for elderly people and those with a disability, exits from homelessness and the tenant-in-situ scheme. The council said that of the €95 million allocated for 2025, about €37 million will be used to fund the cost of homes acquired in 2024. [ The homeless university lecturer: 'There's a sense of shame around it' Opens in new window ] A further portion of the €95 million will be used to fund the acquisition of homes that were sale-agreed in 2024, 'but that will only complete in 2025, and a portion will be used to fund the refurbishment costs for works carried out in 2024″, the council said. 'DCC is currently working with the Department of Housing to determine how much of the €95 million will remain once all of the above are accounted for,' the spokesperson said. 'In advance of completing this assessment, DCC is unable to proceed with any new tenant in situ.' The department denied that any funding had been withdrawn, saying: 'The Government is committed to continue tenant-in-situ or second-hand acquisitions as an option for our local authorities.'
Yahoo
5 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
International Students Fear Leaving the U.S. as Trump's Visa Threats Mount
Schools extend housing and legal support as many students from abroad cancel plans to go home this summer.
CBC
5 days ago
- Business
- CBC
N.S. government looks to compensate rent supplement recipients who were underpaid
Nova Scotia's minister responsible for housing has asked officials in his department to look at compensating people who receive rent supplements that were underpaid for the last two years. Colton LeBlanc told reporters on Thursday that the underpayments — discovered as part of a recent audit of the program — would have been in the range of $10 to $30 per month. While those could be considered smaller amounts, "for folks who rely on a rent supplement, it could be big," the minister said. LeBlanc said the internal audit performed by EY was ordered to take a look at what is a relatively new program that has grown "significantly and exponentially" to support people who need help making rent. The province now spends more than $70 million on rent supplements, compared to about $11 million when the Progressive Conservatives came to power in 2021. "We've tripled the number of people being supported with this rent supplement program," said LeBlanc. "We know of its importance to so many Nova Scotians." 'Human error does occur' The audit findings showed that 104 recipients in East Hants and Timberlea were underpaid during the last two years because their supplement was based on incorrect geographic information. Rent supplements are calculated based on average market rent for a given area. Although the audit found there were also some overpayments to clients due to miscalculations, the minister and his department were unable to provide further details. There are 1,200 total program clients in the assessed area. LeBlanc said that after the errors were detected, corrections were made to ensure appropriate payments beginning with recipients' respective renewal dates. He wasn't sure if people were notified that they were underpaid. "Human error does occur, so we've made changes to the program where now this is automated to avoid these instances moving forward," he said. The audit was made public through the province's freedom of information disclosure website, although the government did not publicize it. NDP Leader Claudia Chender told reporters that the government should have provided more public disclosure about the audit and its findings. She noted the underpayments come at a time when many people in Nova Scotia are still struggling to maintain or find a place to live. "The rent supplement program has been a large part of this government's answer to that and it's clear that they've been mismanaging that."
Arab News
28-05-2025
- Business
- Arab News
Housing support opens to Saudis aged 20 in major policy shift
JEDDAH: In a significant move to broaden access to homeownership, Saudi Arabia has reduced the minimum age for housing support eligibility from 25 to 20. The policy shift is designed to accelerate homeownership among younger citizens and aligns with the Kingdom's broader economic and social development goals. Announcing the update on social media platform X, Minister of Municipal, Rural Affairs and Housing Majid bin Abdullah Al-Hogail expressed his gratitude to King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for endorsing the changes. 'This step will contribute to enabling more families to benefit from diverse housing and financing options, in line with the goals of the Housing Program and Saudi Vision 2030 to raise the homeownership rate to 70 percent,' the minister said. The reform marks a continued commitment by Saudi Arabia to expand the reach and impact of the Saudi Housing Program, or Sakani, a key initiative driving social welfare and economic growth. The program was recently lauded by the International Monetary Fund in its September Article IV Consultation report, which cited notable accomplishments including a rise in the homeownership rate to approximately 64 percent, a 90 percent satisfaction rate among beneficiaries, and a wide variety of housing options. According to the Saudi Press Agency, Al-Hogail stated: 'The move reflects the leadership's continued commitment to strengthening the Kingdom's housing sector and enabling more citizens to own their first homes with ease and flexibility.' He added that the updated regulations would offer a wider array of options tailored to the needs of different Saudi households. One of the landmark reforms includes removing the financial dependency requirement previously applied to wives and divorced mothers, ensuring equal access to housing support regardless of gender. The eligibility period for divorced women has been also revised, with details to be clarified in forthcoming implementing regulations. Previously, divorced mothers were subject to a two-year waiting period before qualifying for support. Another notable change reduces the mandatory holding period for housing support assets—from 10 years to five—allowing beneficiaries to transfer or sell their supported assets more quickly. This is intended to provide greater flexibility and reflect the changing economic and social landscape of Saudi families. The amendments also include enhanced accountability measures. Stricter penalties have been introduced for submitting false information, and authorities will now be able to reclaim any type of housing subsidy—including financial aid, residential units, or land—if an applicant is found to have provided misleading data. Citizens will be able to apply under the new criteria once regulatory procedures are finalized and officially announced.
BBC News
15-05-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
London council Hillingdon 'needs more money' for asylum housing
A west London council is calling for more government funding to support asylum seekers, as it struggles to accommodate more than double the national has a much higher number than average partly because of the proliferation of hotels near Heathrow Airport - once asylum seekers are placed in the buildings the responsibility for them passes to the local borough said it was proud of its work in providing sanctuary, but the money from the government is not enough to support the 3,000 asylum seekers it currently Home Office has been approached for comment. Councillors have estimated a funding shortfall of approximately £5m over the past financial year, leaving residents to foot the Tuckwell, cabinet member for planning, housing and growth, showed BBC London a newly refurbished temporary accommodation block in the said the numbers of people it needs to house was "a huge burden and comes at a cost to the Hillingdon tax payer." Some asylum seekers are deemed ineligible for housing support after leaving hotel accommodation - and as a result the council said there had been "a significant increase" in rough number of referrals to Street Link has grown, and with "tented communities" have sprung up at several locations, including under Carter-Penrose, Hillingdon Council's head of housing needs, said: "Our rough sleeping numbers are increasing because they're impacted upon by the Home Office's evictions from hotels."She added: "We can't help [some] end up rough sleeping, unfortunately." Not too far away from the newly-repurposed temporary accommodation block, BBC London met Joe Devine from Thames Reach, a London-based charity which helps those experiencing homelessness. He and his colleagues were doing outreach work at a park in Hillingdon, where an encampment of asylum seekers were living in tents. He said they come out to engage with people who are sleeping rough, and try to help them into temporary - or other appropriate - accommodation. He added: "We can then work to address whatever support needs they might have." London Councils, the body representing London's boroughs, said asylum accommodation pressures "are felt by boroughs across the capital and are especially acute in port authorities like Hillingdon".The group said it welcomed the government's recent announcement of asylum grant funding for boroughs this financial payment will see each local authority accommodating asylum seekers on 30 March 2025 receive a £1,200 payment per asylum seeker in all accommodation London Councils said more funding is needed – especially considering high housing costs in the capital. The group added it "hoped to work with the government" to develop a multi-year funding package for asylum and solution would have to "take account of London's rising homelessness pressures... in the context of extreme pressures facing London boroughs' finances".It said it estimated a funding shortfall "of at least £500m this year, across all services".
