Sinn Féin TD for Wicklow, John Brady has said the latest housing affordability figures again highlight the scale of the crisis facing families across the county, as well as Government's failure over many years to deliver homes that working people can afford.
Teachta Brady said:
“Wicklow is now one of just three counties in the State where first-time buyers need to earn a six-figure salary to afford a home.
“At €101,250, the salary required in Wicklow is completely out of reach for the vast majority of working people.
“This is not a sudden development.
“It is the result of years of failure to properly tackle the housing crisis and build enough social and genuinely affordable homes.
“For families across Wicklow, this is not simply an abstract statistic.
“It is young couples saving for years but still unable to buy. It is families paying an unsustainable proportion of their income in rent. It is young people who grew up here being forced to leave because they cannot afford to live in their own communities.
“The fact that working people now need to earn more than €100,000 a year to buy a home in Wicklow is an absolute scandal.
“Over many years, Government has spectacularly failed to deliver the supply of affordable homes that communities need. Targets have been set and missed, delivery has failed to keep pace with demand, and the barriers facing working people have continued to grow and grow.
“People across Wicklow are paying the price for these failures.
“House prices have been pushed beyond the reach of ordinary workers, rents remain unaffordable, and too many families are struggling to find a secure home.
“Wicklow families cannot wait for more targets, announcements and promises.
“We need a fundamental change in approach, sustained social and genuinely affordable housebuilding, greater investment in local authority housing, and action to ensure homes are delivered that local people can actually afford.”
ENDS