Cullen extends New House Grant deadline for existing applicants

The Minister for the Environment, Heritage & Local Government, Mr Martin Cullen T.D., announced today (28th October) that the deadline for existing new house grant applicants to complete and occupy their new house and return a request for payment of the grant has been extended from 13th November 2003 to 2nd April 2004. The Department will be writing over the coming weeks to all of the applicants involved informing them of the new requirements and advertisements will appear in the national press.

The Minister said that having given this matter very serious consideration he had concluded that the fairest approach was to extend the deadline for completion and occupation and receipt of a request for payment of the grant to Friday, 2nd April 2004.

The Minister said: "When genuine problems were brought to my attention, I indicated that common sense would apply. I have been anxious to address genuine cases of difficulty among existing applicants who, through no fault of their own, are not able to occupy their houses by the 13th November next.

"In signing the necessary regulations to extend the deadline, the Government are happy to bring certainty to those applicants who were concerned about their position".

The Minister strongly urged that this extension should not detract from the efforts of the builders involved to complete the houses, so that these first time buyers can move into their new homes as quickly as possible.

The Minister emphasised that this extension applies only to those people who submitted valid applications were received prior to the application deadline of 4 December 2002. Where all other conditions of the scheme are met, these applicants will now have until 5.30 pm on Friday, 2 April 2004 to complete and occupy their house and return a request for payment to the Department.

In returning their request for payment by the new deadline, the applicant will have to produce evidence of this occupation. The Minister said that his Department will be writing over the coming weeks to all of the applicants involved to outline the new requirements.

The Minister concluded by saying: "The integrity of the scheme must be maintained. One of the stipulations that was outlined to applicants in correspondence and through advertisements in the media was that people must have occupied their new homes by a deadline. A deadline was adopted to achieve closure of the scheme, to allow re-prioritisation of this budget provision to other housing and social programmes and to prevent speculative applications on houses which may not be built for years to come.

"In adopting the new deadline, certainty and even-handedness has continued to be the approach to the ending of the new house grants scheme".

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Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government

An Roinn Comhshaoil, Oidhreachta agus Rialtais Aituil

NEW HOUSE GRANT SCHEME: EXTENSION OF DEADLINE FOR COMPLETION AND OCCUPATION OF HOUSES FOR EXISTING APPLICANTS

The grant for first time owner occupiers of new houses was abolished from 14 November 2002.

Subject to certain conditions, applications could be made for the grant up to 4 December 2002. One of the conditions of payment of these grants, and all other grant applications received before the date of abolition was that the new home must be completed and occupied and a request for payment of the new house grant received in Housing Grants Section within a year, i.e. on or before 13 November, 2003.

As a number of applicants who had met the application deadline of 4 December 2002 had encountered difficulties in meeting the deadline for completion and occupation of their new homes, the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, Mr Martin Cullen, T.D., has decided to extend this deadline from 13 November 2003 to 2 April 2004.

This extension applies only to existing applicants. Grants will be paid under the scheme in respect of these applications, where all conditions of the scheme are met and where

(a) the applicant's new home is completed and occupied and a request for payment received in Housing Grants Section on or before 5.30p.m. Friday, 2 April 2004;

(b) evidence is supplied with the request for payment of the grant that the applicant is in occupation of the new home.

The Department will be writing to all existing applicants who have not yet claimed payment outlining the precise requirements within the coming weeks. Any further information is available from Housing Grants Section, Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, Ballina, Co. Mayo on Lo-Call 1890 30 50 30