Darragh O’Brien | Business Post

Michael Brennan: Zelenskyy to address Leinster House as state grapples with refugee numbers

The Ukrainian president will speak via videolink on Wednesday, while the government takes on the task of finding accommodation for thousands of refugees

State may enforce inspection of rental properties before they are listed

It is understood the inspections would apply to both real estate agents and websites used to advertise rentals.

O’Brien faces internal pressure over fears new mica report could add €300m to cost of redress scheme

New report, which recommends higher costs for fixing mica houses, has been opposed by some senior civil servants

Property inflation will limit state’s shared equity scheme

A review by this newspaper of new-build homes currently on the market has shown that there is a dearth of properties that will be accessible through the First Home affordable purchase shared equity scheme because market prices already exceed the affordable housing caps

Roles for tackling vacancy face fresh delays

The setting up of full-time local authority jobs to tackle vacancy could again be delayed after initial targets were missed

Standard design brought in to speed up delivery of social housing

Councils given template layouts to expedite process, though critics say other approval hurdles also need to be removed

No increase in number of new build homes to purchase in 2022

Social housing and cost rental homes will absorb extra numbers of homes typically sold on the open market

Builders’ register inspectors will have power to enter sites and search homes

The first ever legally required register of building contractors aims to weed out rogue operators and prevent faulty builds

New ‘lottery’ system to distribute cost-rental homes

Darragh O’Brien, the Minister for Housing, has signed new regulations which require that an “independently-verifiable lottery” should be used to select households for new cost-rental homes when there is excess demand

Two-stage appeal process for lands targeted by new tax

The Residential Zoned Land Tax comes into effect at the start of 2024

Property owners will be able to challenge their inclusion on maps designed for new land tax

The tax will be set at 3 per cent annually for the market value for land zoned for housing that is not being developed

Warnings for excess water use to be issued in the new year

The long-planned system of charges for an estimated 80,000 households with excessive water use has been repeatedly delayed, due to government fears of a political backlash

Darragh O’Brien interview: ‘There are no rubber chickens. It's about bricks and mortar’

The Minister for Housing is adamant that 2022 will be ‘a year for delivery’ and a turning point in the seemingly endless housing crisis

Landowners to be hit with 30% property rezoning tax

Councils set to benefit from ‘radical’ new tariff with proceeds to be used to pay for local social and road infrastructure

Michael Brennan: €2.2 billion mica scheme a significant commitment from the state

Compensation programme is not everything that campaigners wanted but is €800 million more than recommended by the mica working group several weeks ago

Dermot Desmond tells O’Brien investment funds are ‘having a laugh’ at Ireland

In letters to Darragh O’Brien, the billionaire financier said ‘what is happening at the moment from an Ireland Inc perspective is insane’

Property tax on vacant homes to rise as much as five-fold

Move by the government could effectively hit institutional funds that are sitting on valuable empty apartments with a penalty of between €5,000 and €7,000 per unit

Bulk-buying funds who lease to state are exempt from new 10% stamp duty

Amendment to bill facilitates bulk-buying and renting to local authorities by institutional investors, despite Eurostat warning

Housing Agency head believes affordable housing scheme is more sustainable in long run

€75m scheme to allow 2,000 people a year buy new homes criticised by opposition and ESRI as potentially driving up house prices

Shared equity housing scheme could fuel construction in ‘wrong areas’, says ESRI

Think-tank tells an Oireachtas committee that the proposed Affordable Housing Bill could cause house prices to rise