Housing Services

The Affordable Dwelling Purchase Arrangement sees Mayo County Council make new, local homes available for purchase by first time buyers and Fresh Start applicants at reduced prices, whose combined mortgage and deposit will not cover the market price of the newly built home. The Affordable Dwelling Purchase Arrangement is set out in legislation and regulation. Link to Legislation, Regulation 1 and Regulation 2

In return, Mayo County Council takes a percentage ownership in the property purchased. The percentage ownership that Mayo County Council holds in the home is known as an equity share. The equity stake in the affordable home is equal to the discount of the purchase price from the full market value of the home.

The purchaser can redeem or ‘buy out’ this equity share at a time of their choosing, but there is no obligation to do so. If the purchaser chooses not to redeem the equity share while living in the home, Mayo County Council can do so when the property is sold, transferred, or after the death of the owner.

A total of 5 homes, consisting of three bed units within a development of new social housing units, are being made available for sale by Mayo County Council in the Golf Course Road, Westport, Co Mayo under the Affordable Purchase Arrangement as set out in the Affordable Housing Act 2021 and the associated Housing Regulations legislation. The three bed homes will generally be available only for first-time buyers who do not own a home (although a small number of exceptions apply).

Property Type	Market Value	Minimum Sale Price (€)	*Gross Household Income
3-bedroom End Terrace House	€345,000	€259,000	€81,938 Max
3-bedroom Semi-Detached House	€325,000	€243,000	€77,187 Max
3-Bedroom Middle Terrace House	€310,000	€232,000	€58,125 Min

*Income will be assessed as per Mayo County Council’s Income Assessment Policy for Affordable Housing. Details are available on Housing Section of Mayo County Council’s website www.mayo.ie

To apply and subsequently purchase one of these homes an applicant must satisfy the following eligibility criteria of the scheme. 

• Purchasers will enter an affordable dwelling purchase arrangement with Mayo County Council.

• Under this arrangement the Council will take a percentage equity share in the dwelling equal to the difference between the market value of the dwelling and the price paid by the purchaser, expressed as a percentage of the market value of the dwelling.

• The Council may not seek realisation of its affordable dwelling equity for a 40-year period (other than for breach of the agreement). However, the purchaser may choose to redeem or buy out the affordable dwelling equity at any time by means of one or a series of payments to the Council.

• Eligible applicants will be prioritised based on Mayo County Council’s Scheme of Priority. In relation to 30% of the dwellings as per Mayo County Council’s scheme of priority, date and time of application will be one of the criteria on which eligible applications will be prioritised under the Council’s Scheme of Priority. This means that eligible applications received first will be given priority.

A copy of the Sales Brochure can be found here

Applications will be accepted here from 9.30am on Friday 17^th January 2025.

Applications will be accepted between 17^th January 2025 to 7^th February 2025 (12pm). Applications cannot be accepted after the portal closes on 7^th February 2025.

If you have any queries during the online application process, please contact affordablehousing@mayoco.ie. Further information on this scheme is available from the Housing Section of Mayo County Council’s website at www.mayo.ie

The affordable purchase price will be calculated by Mayo County Council based on the “purchasing power” of eligible applicants. This calculation takes into account applicants maximum mortgage capacity and the minimum price set for the home by the Council.

The purchasing power of applicants will be calculated as the combined total of:

• Maximum mortgage capacity, i.e., 4 times gross household income, plus,
• A minimum deposit of 10% of the affordable purchase price, plus, 
• Relevant savings**.  

**If you have savings above a certain amount, you may not qualify for the scheme. You can have the money to cover the deposit on the home and an additional €30,000. Anything above this is added to your purchasing power. And, if this purchasing power goes above the maximum price set for each home, you are not eligible for the scheme.

In order to be eligible to apply for an Affordable Dwelling Purchase Arrangement (Affordable Housing), applicants must satisfy the below criteria:

• Be a first-time buyer or meet the exceptions under the Fresh Start Principle, or own a dwelling which, because of its size, is not suited to the current accommodation needs of the applicant’s household.
• Each person included in the application must have the right to reside indefinitely in the State. 
• The affordable home must be the household’s normal place of residence.
• The gross household income must be below a certain amount.  This income limit will be different for each scheme.
• Eligibility calculator is available at the Affordable Homes Website. Click here

A ‘Fresh Start Principle’ applies in respect of an Affordable Purchase Agreement for an Affordable Housing Scheme.

The following categories of persons may be eligible to apply for an affordable home.

1.  Applicant(s) that previously held a legal interest in a residential property but is divested of this legal interest through any of the following mechanisms may be eligible to apply:

• Legal separation
• Divorce
• Bankruptcy
• Insolvency

Examples of documentary evidence will be:

• Separation agreement
• Court order
• Affidavit from a Solicitor confirming the separation or divorce
• Solicitors letter confirming the applicant has exited insolvency or bankruptcy and that any previously purchased home has been sold or they have fully divested of that home as result of such process.

2. Applicant(s) that previously owned, was/were beneficially entitled to, or have an interest in a dwelling in the state and that this dwelling, because of the size, is not suited to the current accommodation needs of the applicant’s household i.e., house overcrowded, may be eligible to apply.

As well as the above eligibility criteria, a Scheme of Priority was approved by the Elected Members of Mayo County Council on 14th October 2024.

• The purpose of the Scheme of Priority is to outline the rules Mayo County Council uses to decide which applicants will be offered dwellings. The Scheme of Priority will apply in the event where there are more eligible applicants than affordable homes available.
• Mayo County Council Scheme of Priority For Affordable Dwelling Purchase Arrangements

The legislative Regulation 2(2) of S.I.20/2023 states that the assessable income for an Affordable dwelling purchase arrangement shall be the gross income of the applicant for the relevant year. This must be calculated in accordance with the ‘Affordable Household Income Assessment Policy’.

Mayo County Council Income Assessment Policy

While it is not a requirement, it is recommended that applicants have their Mortgage Approval in Principle prior to applying for Affordable Housing, or at least be in a position to apply for a mortgage.

A minimum deposit of 10% of the purchase price of the property will also be required so applicants should ensure they have sufficient savings before applying. First time buyer applicants can avail of the Help to Buy Scheme. This is operated by the Revenue Commissioners. For more information please click here 

There will be an individual application for each Affordable Dwelling Purchase Arrangement scheme, there is no general application form or waiting list.

When affordable homes are made available for purchase, they will be advertised in the following places;

1. Mayo County Council’s website
2. Mayo County Council’s Social Media pages
3. In a local/national newspaper

The opening date and time for the for the application will be advertised at least two weeks in advance. The advertisement will include details about the scheme including how and when to apply.  

Applications will only be accepted through an online application portal. On the day the application portal opens, you will first need to register on the portal and then you can proceed to complete the online application form and submit the requested documentation.

The decision on your application will be in accordance with eligibility criteria and Mayo County Council's Scheme of Priorities. Please be aware that applications will be prioritised on a first come first served basis.

A link to the application portal with a list of the required documentation will be available on Mayo County Council’s website.

Please see a list of all the required documentation to make an application.

Mayo County Council Required Documentation for Affordable Housing Application

Salary Certificate

Mayo County Council Affordable Dwelling Purchase Arrangement Frequently Asked Question's

Mayo County Council are seeking expressions of interest for the delivery of new dwellings for affordable housing in the following towns:

• Castlebar
• Westport

In this call, building contractors and housing developers are being asked to consider offering properties with planning permission to Mayo County Council under an advance purchase turnkey arrangement.

This call is targeted at advance purchase opportunities for a minimum of 10 dwellings in any one scheme. Please note that Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000 as amended applies.

How Mayo County Council can help you in this process

Where proposals for affordable housing are received and considered acceptable, Mayo County Council will make an application to the Affordable Housing Fund (AHF) under the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage for a subsidy to assist in meeting the cost of delivery of affordable purchase housing.

The AHF funding is dependent on several criteria and 3 funding limits. Please refer to the below table.

Scheme Density	Subsidy Limit
Dwellings in schemes with a net density of over 50 dwellings per hectare in cities designated under the National Planning Framework	€100,000
Dwellings in schemes with a net density of over 35 dwellings and under 50 dwellings per hectare in all urban areas	€75,000
Dwellings in schemes with a net density of less than 35 dwellings per hectare	€50,000

Where mixed tenure schemes are provided (affordable/social) there is a requirement that no more than 30% of the scheme is allocated to social, where mixed tenure schemes over 40 units are proposed.

Affordable Purchase dwellings must achieve a minimum of 15% discount.

Individual unit all-in development costs must not exceed the upper limits set out under the Affordable Housing Fund. The upper limits will differ according to scheme density and location.

The Affordable Housing Fund application is subject to approval by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. Once funding is agreed, we can enter into an advanced purchase agreement with you. The advance purchase agreement provides for the direct sale of homes by the developer to an eligible purchaser nominated by the local authority. Mayo County Councill will assess the affordable purchaser’s eligibility and nominate them to you.

Mayo County Council will release the subsidy to you on completion of the sale.

Please submit a completed Expression of Interest Application Form as soon as possible but no later than 3rd February, 2025.

• Download the expression of interest application form

Submissions can be sent by email to affordablehousing@mayococo.ie or in a sealed envelope marked and addressed:

Expressions of Interest, Affordable Housing Scheme, Housing, Mayo County Council, College House, Station Road, Swinford, Co Mayo.

For further details please contact:

Housing Department,

Mayo County Council.

Email: affordablehousing@mayococo.ie

Local Authority Home Loan

Help to buy

Affordable Homes

affordablehousing@mayococo.ie