Mortgage support for 300 Clare families

THE total payout to Clare families under the Mortgage Interest Supplement Scheme (MISS) has increased 10-fold over a five-year period to €1.2 million, The Clare Champion can exclusively reveal.
This is reflective of the fact that more people are in receipt of social welfare due to growing unemployment. Almost 300 Clare families are now availing of the scheme.
Clare County Councillor Martin Conway has predicted that the amount of money paid out under the scheme could reach €3m by year end, as the number of applications received by the Health Service Executive (HSE) continues to rise significantly due to spiralling unemployment.
Councillor Conway has also warned that an increasing number of Clare families are resorting to moneylenders to keep a roof over their head.
According to figures obtained from the HSE under the Freedom of Information Act, 55 families received a total of €96,072 in 2005, 64 families were paid €127,086 in 2006; 79 families got €241,564 in 2007, while 182 families received €580,081 in 2008. The latest figures show €1.221m was paid out to 293 families last year. The average cost of providing these payments to families over the five-year period was €3,367 per annum per family.
Councillor Conway has blamed the dramatic rise on the fact that thousands of people have lost their jobs over the last 18 months.
“There has been a major increase in the number of people approaching me for advice and guidance, who have found themselves in serious financial trouble. It sickens me to the core to see what is going on in Anglo Irish Bank and the continuing support given to the banks and then to meet young couples with dependant children at their wits end trying to survive and keep their homes and families together. There are thousands of people clinging on by a thread,” he claimed.
“Everyone is feeling the pinch but there are people who are in complete despair over what they have experienced in their lives over the last 12 months. People are terrified they are going to lose their homes. It would break your heart to see people in this state,” he said.
The MISS pays the interest-only portion of a mortgage payment for those who are in receipt of some form of social welfare and are not working over 30 hours a week in part-time employment. Anyone in full-time employment is automatically ineligible and the income of a spouse or partner is also taken into account in the assessment.
Paul Woulfe of the Clare Citizens’ Information Service confirmed there is a significant increase in the number of people looking for financial assistance following lay-offs or a reduction in working hours.
Mr Woulfe said he is advising people on a daily basis about this scheme and recently made a submission to the Department of Social and Family Affairs, which is conducting a national review, to see if the scheme needs to be changed in light of the recession.
In his submission, Mr Woulfe proposed that the rental income from private tenants should be disregarded for the MISS when a person loses their job, as it goes directly towards paying the mortgage. If they were to become homeless, they would then be dependent on the rent supplement/rent a room relief.
He suggested the general one-year limit of the payment should be extended, considering the amount of time people are currently without work.
A HSE spokeswoman confirmed there is an increase in the number of MISS applications this year, as unemployment levels continue to rise. She pointed out that any person who is refused or has their supplement withdrawn can appeal to an independent officer.
Losingyourjob.ie was developed by the Citizens Information Board last year to help people who are unemployed or are on reduced working hours to get comprehensive information on their rights and entitlements.