S.I. No. 29/1972 - Housing Authorities (Loans For Acquisition Or Construction of Houses) Regulations, 1972.

S.I. No. 29 of 1972.

HOUSING AUTHORITIES (LOANS FOR ACQUISITION OR CONSTRUCTION OF HOUSES) REGULATIONS, 1972.

The Minister for Local Government, in exercise of the powers conferred on him by sections 5 and 39 of the Housing Act, 1966 (No. 21 of 1966) with the consent of the Minister for Finance hereby makes the following Regulations : —

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Housing Authorities (Loans for Acquisition or Construction of Houses) Regulations, 1972.

2. In these Regulations—

" the Act " means the Housing Act, 1966 ;

" borrower " includes a person applying for a loan:

" loan " means a loan under section 39 of the act;

" value " means value as determined in accordance with Article 4 of these Regulations;

" the Commissioner " means the Commissioner of Valuation;

" ownership " means such interest or combination of interests in a house as, together with the interest of the purchaser of the ownership, will constitute either a fee simple (including fee farm) interest in possession or a leasehold interest in possession of such number of years unexpired at the date the loan is made or, where the loan is made in instalments, at the date of the payment of the first instalment, as is equal to or greater than the sum of the term fixed for the repayment of the loan and fifteen years.

3. (1) Subject to the provisions of paragraph (2) of this article, the amount of a loan shall not exceed—

(a) in the case of a house occupied or to be occupied for the first time, the erection of which commenced before the 1st day of March, 1971—

(i) £2,700 or 95 per cent of the value of the house excluding from that value the amount of any grant under any enactment, whichever is the less; or

(ii) in case the house is situate in the county of Dublin or in the county boroughs of Dublin, Cork, Limerick or Waterford or in the boroughs of Dún Laoghaire or Galway——£3,000 or 95 per cent of the value of the house excluding from that value the amount of any grant under any enactment, whichever is the less;

(b) in the case of a house occupied or to be occupied for the first time, the erection of which commenced on or after the 1st day of March, 1971—

(i) £3,000 or 95 per cent of the value of the house excluding from that value the amount of any grant under any enactment, whichever is the less; or

(ii) in case the house is situate in the county of Dublin or in the county boroughs of Dublin, Cork, Limerick or Waterford or in the boroughs of Dún Laoghaire or Galway—£3,300 or 95 per cent of the value of the house excluding from that value the amount of any grant under any enactment, whichever is the less;

(c) in the case of an application for a loan which was received by the housing authority before the 1st day of March, 1971 in respect of the acquisition of a house of which the applicant for the loan was not the first occupier or in case he was the first occupier of which he was a tenant for a period of not less than two years—

(i) £2,700 or 95 per cent of the value of the house, which ever is the less; or

(ii) in case the house is situate in the county of Dublin or in the county boroughs of Dublin, Cork, Limerick or Waterford or in the boroughs of Dún Laoghaire or Galway——£3,000 or 95 per cent of the value of the house, whichever is the less;

(d) in the case of an application for a loan which was received by the housing authority on or after the 1st day of March 1971, in respect of the acquisition of a house of which the applicant for the loan was not the first occupier, or in case he was the first occupier, of which he was a tenant for a period of not less than two years—

(i) £3,000 or 95 per cent of the value of the house, whichever is the less; or

(ii) in case the house is situate in the county of Dublin or in the county boroughs of Dublin, Cork, Limerick or Waterford or in the boroughs of Dún Laoghaire or Galway—3,300 or 95 per cent of the value of the house, whichever is the less.

(2) Where the borrower surrenders to a housing authority the tenancy of a dwelling provided by a housing authority under the Housing Act, 1966 , the amount of a loan shall not exceed the appropriate amount prescribed in paragraph (1) of this article or 99 per cent of the value of the house excluding from that value the amount of any grant under any enactment, whichever is the less.

4. (1) Subject to the provisions of paragraph (2) of this article the value of a house shall be—

(a) in the case of a house occupied or to be occupied for the first time, the amount which in the opinion of the housing authority represents the reasonable cost (including all reasonable incidental expenses) of building the house and the value of the interest of the borrower in the site thereof, together with, where the ownership of the house is acquired by the borrower, all reasonable expenses incidental to such acquisition, or

(b) in any other case, the amount which, in the opinion of the housing authority, the house, if sold in the open market, might reasonably be expected to realise together with so much, if any, of the legal and other expenses incidental to the acquisition of the ownership of the house as the housing authority may consider proper.

(2) Where part of the house is used, or is intended to be used, as a shop or for a purpose other than as a dwelling, that part shall not be taken into account in determining the value of the house.

(3) The value of a house may be determined by a housing authority before the house is constructed where plans of the house have been submitted to the housing authority for that purpose.

5. (1) Where a housing authority indicates to a person the amount of the value of a house as determined by them and that person contends that a greater amount might properly have been indicated, that person may, on payment of the appropriate fee set out in the Schedule to these Regulations, submit his contention for consideration by the Commissioner.

(2) The Commissioner, after consideration of a contention submitted under paragraph (1) of this article and after making such enquiries as he considers necessary shall state whether or not he considers that the contention is well founded, and, if he considers that it is well founded, the amount which he considers might properly have been indicated by the housing authority.

(3) A statement of the Commissioner under paragraph (2) of this article shall not affect the discretion of the housing authority with respect to the loan or the amount thereof.

6. A housing authority shall not make a loan in respect of a house unless the house is used or is intended to be used primarily as a dwelling.

7. Where a loan is made in respect of a house in course of construction the loan may be made by instalments from time to time as the building of the house progresses so that the total instalments do not at any time before the completion of the house exceed 90 per cent of the value of the work done up to that time on the construction of the house including the value of the interest of the borrower in the site thereof or 90 per cent of the amount of the loan, whichever is the less.

8. A loan shall be repaid with interest within such period not exceeding 35 years from the date of payment of the loan or, if the loan is made by instalments, from such date as may be determined by the housing authority.

9. The rate of interest on a loan shall be such rate as may be fixed by the housing authority making the loan.

10. A loan may be repaid either by equal instalments of principal or by an annuity of principal and interest combined and all payments on account of principal or interest shall be made at such intervals, which shall not be more than half-yearly, as may be determined by the housing authority.

11. The borrower may after one month's notice in writing, and on paying all sums due on account of interest, repay to the housing authority the whole of the outstanding principal of a loan, or any part thereof being £10 or a multiple of £10.

12. Before making a loan a housing authority shall satisfy themselves—

(a) that the borrower occupies or intends to occupy the house as his normal place of residence:

(b) that the value of the ownership of the house is sufficient to provide adequate security for the loan:

(c) that the title to the ownership is one which an ordinary mortgagee would be willing to accept;

(d) that the borrower is not a borrower in respect of any other loan made by them under the Act or is not the proprietor of a house in respect of which an advance, or any part of an advance, made by them under the Small Dwellings Acquisition Acts, 1899 to 1962, remains unpaid;

(e) that the repayment of the loan to the housing authority is secured either by—

(i) an instrument vesting the ownership (including any interest already held by the borrower) in the housing authority subject to the right of redemption by the borrower, or

(ii) in a case where the ownership of the borrower consists of a leasehold interest, by an instrument of mortgage by subdemise subject to a nominal reversion, vesting the term of the subdemise in the housing authority subject to the right of redemption by the borrower, or

(iii) where the title to the ownership is registered under the provisions of the Registration of Title Act, 1964 by an instrument charging the ownership with payment to the housing authority of the amount of the loan together with the interest thereon.

13. (1) A house, in respect of the acquisition or construction of which a loan has been made shall, until the loan with interest thereon is fully paid, or until the housing authority shall have recovered possession of the house in accordance with the provisions of section 39 of the Act be held subject to the following conditions:—

(a) every sum for the time being due in respect of principal or interest shall be punctually paid;

(b) the borrower shall use the house as his normal place of residence unless the housing authority consent to his residing elsewhere either indefinitely or for a specified period;

(c) the borrower shall keep the house adequately insured to the satisfaction of the housing authority;

(d) the house shall be kept in good sanitary condition and repair;

(e) the house shall not be used in such a manner as to be a nuisance to the owners or occupiers of adjacent houses;

(f) any person, authorised by the housing authority in writing for the purpose, may at all reasonable times enter the house for the purpose of ascertaining whether the conditions specified in this article are complied with.

(2) The insurance of a house in respect of which a loan is made may be effected, at the option of the housing authority, either by the authority on behalf of the borrower or by the borrower, and

(a) where such insurance is effected by the housing authority on behalf of the borrower the borrower shall pay the amount of each premium in respect of such insurance to the housing authority on demand, or, where the housing authority so agree, by an addition to the instalments or other periodical payments in respect of the repayment of the loan, or

(b) where such insurance is effected by the borrower the receipt for the payment of each premium in respect of such insurance shall be produced by the borrower to the housing authority on request by them.

(3) Any addition to an instalment or other periodical payment, payable under sub-paragraph (a) of paragraph (2) of this article, shall not be included in the amount of a loan secured in accordance with the provisions of article 12 of these Regulations.

14. The borrower shall not without the consent of the housing authority (which shall not be unreasonably withheld) at any time transfer his interest in the house and any such transfer shall be made subject to the conditions set out in article 13 of these Regulations.

15. A borrower shall be personally liable for the repayment of any sum due in respect of a loan until he shall have transferred, with the consent of the housing authority under article 14 of these Regulations, his interest in the house in respect of which the loan was made.

16. A housing authority shall, before proceeding under sub-section (4) of section 39 of the act in respect of a breach of any of the conditions of article 13 of these Regulations other than condition (a) of that article, serve a notice in writing on the borrower requiring him to comply with the condition and if the borrower undertakes in writing, within fourteen days of the service of the notice, to comply with the condition and complies with the condition within two months of the date of such undertaking the housing authority shall not take possession of the house.

17. A housing authority shall keep a record of loans made by them under section 39 of the Act and shall enter therein in regard to each loan—

(a) a description of the house in respect of which the loan is made;

(b) the amount of the loan;

(c) the amount of the loan for the time being remaining unpaid;

(d) the name of the borrower for the time being;

(e) such other particulars as the housing authorities think fit to enter.

18. The Housing Authorities (Loans for Acquisition or Construction of Houses) Regulations, 1964 to 1968 are hereby revoked.

SCHEDULE

SCALE OF FEES

1. Where the submission to the Commissioner is in respect of one house only, the fee shall be £10.

2. Where the submission to the Commissioner is in respect of two or more houses, the fee shall be—

(a) in case the houses are of similar design and construction and are two in number—£15;

(b) in case the houses are of similar design and construction and are three or four in number—£20;

(c) in case the houses are of similar design and construction and are five or six in number—£25;

(d) in case the houses are of similar design and construction and are seven or more in number—£30;

(e) in case the houses, not being of similar design and construction, include one group (and not more) consisting of houses of similar design and construction—the appropriate sum in respect of that group together with—

(i) if there is one house (and not more) not in the group, £10, or

(ii) if there are two or more houses not in the group, £10 multiplied by the number of these houses,

(f) in case the houses, not being of similar design and construction, consist of or include two or more groups consisting of houses of similar design and construction—the aggregate of the appropriate sums in respect of those groups, together with—

(i) if the houses include one house (and not more) not in any of the groups, £10, or

(ii) if the houses include two or more houses not in any of the groups, £10 multiplied by the number of the houses not in any of the groups, and

(g) in any other case—£10 multiplied by the number of the houses.

3. In the foregoing paragraph any reference to the appropriate sum in respect of a group shall be construed as a reference to—

(a) where the number of houses in the group is two—£15·

(b) where the number is three or four—£20;

(c) where the number is five or six—£25;

(d) where the number is seven or more—£30.

GIVEN under the Official Seal of the Minister for Local Government

this 31st day of January, 1972.

ROBERT MOLLOY,

Minister for Local Government.

The Minister for Finance hereby consents to the foregoing Regulations.

DATED this 31st day of January, 1972.

SEOIRSE Ó COLLA,

Minister for Finance.

EXPLANATORY NOTE.

These Regulations control the making of loans by housing authorities under section 39 of the Housing Act, 1966 , to persons for the purpose of acquiring or constructing houses. They replace the provisions of the Housing Authorities (Loans for Acquisition or Construction of Houses) Regulations, 1964 to 1968, which have been revoked.

The Regulations set out the method by which the value of a house is to be determined by a housing authority for the purposes of a loan and provide for appeal to the Commissioner of Valuation against the value as so determined.

The Regulations provide that for new houses commenced or for previously-occupied houses for which applications for loans are received by housing authorities on or after 1st March, 1971 the amount of a loan shall not exceed £3,000 or 95 per cent of the value of the house (excluding from that value the amount of a grant under any enactment) whichever is the less except in the case of houses which are situated in the county of Dublin, or in the county boroughs of Dublin, Cork, Limerick or Waterford or in the boroughs of Dún Laoghaire and Galway, where the maximum loan may not exceed £3,300. Reduced limits of £2,700 and £3,000 respectively are prescribed for new houses commenced or previously-occupied houses for which loan applications were received before 1st March, 1971. Subject to these limits, a loan of up to 99 per cent of the value of the house may, however, be made to a person who surrenders to a housing authority the tenancy of a dwelling provided by them. The former limit on the amount which a housing authority may advance by way of instalments of a loan in respect of a house under construction is being increased from 75 per cent to 90 per cent of the value of work done and the borrower's interest in the site or 90 per cent of the amount of the loan whichever is the less.

The Regulations set out the matters regarding which a housing authority must satisfy themselves before making a loan (including conditions in relation to residence by the borrower in the house, value of the borrower's ownership in the house, title to the house and the securing of the loan) and the conditions subject to which a house is to be held by the borrower until the loan is repaid.