How do I know if I am eligible?
Minimum eligibility criteria
To be eligible for an affordable housing scheme, in general you must meet the following criteria:
- You are over 18 years of age.
- Your household income does not exceed the advertised household limit of the scheme you are applying for. There are some exceptions to this - see our exception to income limit policy for more information.
- You are a first time buyer or qualify under the fresh start principle.
- You have the right to reside indefinitely in the State.
- The affordable home will be your principle place of residence.
- You have a minimum deposit of 10% of the purchase price. First time buyers maybe eligible to apply for revenues Help to Buy scheme which can be used towards your deposit.
- You are able to finance the purchase of the home to at least the minimum advertised purchase price.
- Your purchasing power does not exceed 95% of the advertised open market value of the home.
While it is not a requirement, it is strongly recommended that you have Mortgage Approval in Principle prior to applying to purchase an affordable home, or at least be in a position to apply for a mortgage.
If you are unable to get a mortgage from a private lender you maybe eligible to apply for a Local Authority Home Loan.
Assessing your application
All applications are assessed using the above criteria and inline with the Affordable Housing Regulations by Laois County Council.
Laois County Council reserves the right to request additional documents if required to confirm your eligibility for any Affordable Purchase Scheme.
In addition to the above eligibility criteria, a scheme of priorities for the allocation of homes applies. It outlines the process applied where the number of eligible applicants exceeds the number of affordable homes available for purchase in the any Local Authority Affordable Purchase Scheme.
Where the number of applications that are valid and eligible does not exceed the number of homes available, homes will be allocated on a first come first serve basis.
Further information
The documents sections of this guide page contains:
| Information on: | Document to review |
|---|---|
| First time buyer status | Glossary of terms |
| Purchasing power | Glossary of terms |
| Fresh start applicants | Fresh start principle |
| Types of income that are assessable | Assessable incoming policy |
| Exception to income limits | Exception to income limits policy |
| How the houses are allocated | Scheme of priorities |
Useful links