Daft Property - Irish Property News

Over 33% of claims to relief scheme not paid... MORE THAN one-third of people who applied to the Government for emergency welfare support to help pay their mortgage last year did not receive a payment in 2009. Figures released by the Health Service Executive (HSE) show 13,469 of the 18,443 people who applied for mortgage interest supplement payments in 2009 were granted relief. The remaining 4,974 people were either refused support, withdrew their application or are still awaiting a response from community welfare officers. The scheme operates to provide support to people unable to meet their mortgage repayments due to a change in circumstances, such as loss of a job. Under the scheme, households receive an average of about €365 every month to help them cover part of their repayments. There has been a sharp rise in the number of people receiving mortgage interest supplements since the recession took hold. At the end of December 2009, the number of people availing of the scheme was 15,1...

Ireland's dream is over as bankers chase McJobs... In Dublin, the sushi conveyor belt has stopped turning at one of the city's swankiest Japanese restaurants. In the west of the country, a new McDonald's outlet has been inundated with job applicants, among them bankers, architects and accountants. As signs of the times go, it could hardly be more dramatic. “It's no joke, I had to do a double-take on the CVs,” Kieran McDermott, the franchisee, said. He removed a “Now Hiring” banner on the site of the fast-food restaurant after only ten days. “The jobs were advertised nowhere else.” More than 500 people applied for the 50 available jobs. From indulging the latest food fad to flipping burgers, Ireland's fall from economic grace has been dramatic . Europe's most successful economy for more than a decade - the famous Celtic Tiger - became the first of the eurozone nations to move officially into recession last autumn. Since then, the descent into a financial maelstro...

Will your lifestyle survive?... THE GARDA and the Army have been refreshing their riot-control skills in recent times. Clearly, the fear is that the Irish might emulate their French and Greek counterparts and stage a peasants’ revolt. But even Opposition party members are taken aback by the “rather eerie silence” around the constituencies in the wake of the emergency Budget ... “The only flashpoint was the Pat Kenny show with Brian Lenihan,” says one Fine Gaeler. That programme featured a 51-year-old teacher on €63,000 who stood to lose €800-€900 a month. Although she might be considered better off than most, she claimed to understand “how people go home and hang themselves”. The main sense was an absence of hope. Some households stood to lose a third of their income, yet there was no sign of economic stimulus. And what was it all for? As Caroline, a mother of four, told The Irish Times : “It’s to pay for the smart gambles hatched in the Galway tent. And the only hope they can offer u...

World reaction to Budget... The reaction to the Budget from European and US websites was wide ranging, with news organisations throughout the globe reporting on the new measures introduced by the Government. The story was picked up not only the usual large media organisations such as the BBC and the Independent, but also by papers less familiar to Irish taxpayers, such as Canada's Toronto Star. The Times online carried a short video clip about the emergency budget and what it would mean for Britain's economy. Describing it as a "bust budget" , the video said Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan was delivering his second emergency Budget in seventh months, describing it as a grim task for any finance minister. However, it pointed out that Ireland had some advantages over Britain, with a smaller national debt, and said that markets would now be looking to Britain's fiscal position. The accompanying article described the measures as a way to address the "runaway...