Sir, – A shared-equity scheme? We already have one. It’s called inheritance (capital acquisitions) tax. It gives the Government equity in most Dublin homes with a family of two or fewer children. Another burden being placed on the younger generation. A more favourable gift threshold might just encourage some ageing home-owners to move beyond the Pale and free up housing for the next generation. – Yours, etc,
VALERIE McKEEVER,
Dún Laoghaire,
Co Dublin.
Sir, – Irish millennials are in a hard place because so many of them cannot afford a home of their own.
The few who have recently managed, at great cost, to purchase a house face decades of repayments on Irish mortgages which, according to the Central Bank of Ireland, have the highest interest rates in the Euro zone.
Already stretched on low or stagnant wages, many of them will face a new expense on November 1st, 2021, when they become liable for a sizeable local property tax on their high-priced modest houses.
If the Government is serious about helping young people it must consider, among other pertinent issues, some alleviation of the impending local property tax for those among this hard-pressed generation who have managed to purchase a home. – Yours, etc,
PATRICK O’DONOGHUE,
Maynooth,
Co Kildare.
Sir, – Compare the housing situation to a Monopoly board. There’s Foreign Investment Street, Bank Street, Developer Street, Politician Street, Rich Street and Well-Off Street. The rest of the population? We do not even have a piece on the board. Most importantly, there is no Social Justice Street piece anywhere to be found on the board. We need a new Monopoly board for Tent Street, Eviction Street, and Astronomical Rents Street. That’s it in a nutshell. – Yours, etc,
KEVIN BYRNE,
Bantry,
Co Cork.