The third tranche of homes to be delivered under the Government’s new cost-rental housing model have been unveiled by housing agency Clúid.
The 56 properties, located in the Barnhall Meadows development in Leixlip, Co Kildare, will be rented to qualifying tenants at sub-market rates of €900 and €1,250 a month. Clúid said the rents are about 45 per cent below market rates.
Applications officially opened on the agency’s website on Wednesday with the first properties due to be occupied before the end of the year, according to The Irish Times.
More than 1,000 families applied for the State’s first 25 cost-rental homes when the first scheme in Balbriggan in north Co Dublin was launched, also by Clúid, in July.
The State-backed cost-rental initiative aims to assist those on “moderate incomes” who are above the income threshold for social housing.
Under the scheme, rents for the homes are set at a minimum of 25 per cent below market values.
The idea is that tenants pay rent that covers the costs only of delivering, managing and maintaining the homes.
The Leixlip scheme, which was developed by homebuilder Glenveagh, is the third such scheme to be delivered under the new model.
“Cost rental homes provide working people, who do not already own property, access to right sized homes at a rent they can afford,” said Clúid director of housing services Kath Cottier.
“With rents an average of 44 per cent below market rates, these new homes here in Barnhall Meadows, Leixlip, offer excellent quality, long-term secure rental options for middle-income households and those struggling to rent on the open market,” she said.
“The security of tenure and affordable rent offered here will support the creation of a more sustainable community and change how we think about long-term rental options in Ireland,” she added.
When complete, Glenveagh will have delivered 450 homes in the Barnhall Meadows development.