Housing

Call made to extend help to buy scheme

A call is being made on the Government to extend the help-to buy scheme for three years.

The Construction Industry Federation says it has proven to be a popular success with over 33,000 applicants being assisted so far to purchase their first home.

As part of a pre-Budget submission, the CIF says 27,500 construction workers will be needed over the next five years to meet housing demands.

Spokesperson Tom Parlon says with hyper inflation in construction costs, the Help-to buy scheme is the only hope for struggling house buyers.

“There’s been every attempt to keep prices down, however unfortunately the massive inflation that has happened for building materials has caused major pressure.

“Unfortunately that pressure is still there.

“There’s quite a lot of energy use in house building, and that certainly is a very big concern into the future.”