The Housing (Northern Ireland) Order 1986

Entitlement to reinstatement grant or repurchase N.I.

6.—(1) A person seeking assistance under this Part in respect of a defective dwelling shall make a written application to the Executive within such period as is specified in the designation in question.

(2) Subject to paragraph (8) and Article 17(3), the Executive, on receiving such an application shall, if the applicant is eligible for assistance in respect of the defective dwelling, determine[F1 as soon as reasonably practicable] whether he is entitled to assistance by way of reinstatement grant or by way of repurchase.

(3) For the purposes of that determination the applicant is entitled to assistance by way of reinstatement grant if—

(a) the Executive is satisfied that each of the conditions mentioned in paragraph (4) is met, and

(b) paragraph (5) does not apply in his case;

and in any other case he is entitled to assistance by way of repurchase.

(4) The conditions referred to in paragraph (3) are that—

(a) the defective dwelling is a house;

(b) if the work required to reinstate the dwelling (together with any other work which the Executive is satisfied the applicant proposes to carry out) were carried out—

(i) the dwelling would be likely to provide satisfactory housing accommodation for a period of at least 30 years, and

(ii) an individual acquiring a fee simple estate in the dwelling with vacant possession would be likely to be able to arrange a mortgage on satisfactory terms with a lending institution;

(c) giving assistance by way of reinstatement grant is justified having regard, on the one hand, to the amount of reinstatement grant that would be payable in respect of the dwelling in pursuance of this Part and, on the other hand, to the likely value of the fee simple estate in the dwelling with vacant possession after the work required to reinstate it had been carried out; and

Sub‐para. (d) rep. by SR 1988/329

(5) This paragraph applies in the case of an applicant where the Executive is satisfied on a claim made by him that it would be unreasonable to expect him to secure or await the carrying out of the work required to reinstate the defective dwelling.

(6) The Department may by order amend paragraph (4) (whether as originally enacted or as previously amended under this paragraph) so as to—

(a) modify or omit any of the conditions mentioned in that paragraph, or

(b) add or substitute for any of those conditions other conditions;

and an order made under this paragraph shall not affect the operation of this Article in relation to applications made under this Article before the order comes into force.

(7) For the purposes of this Part—

(a) the work required to reinstate a defective dwelling is the work relating to the dwelling that is required to be done to the building that consists of or includes the dwelling in order to deal satisfactorily with the qualifying defect, and

(b) where there is work falling within sub-paragraph (a), the work required to reinstate the defective dwelling includes—

(i) any work required, in order to deal satisfactorily with the qualifying defect, to be done to any garage or outhouse designed or constructed as that building is designed or constructed, being a garage or outhouse in which the interest of the person eligible for assistance subsists and which is occupied with and used for the purposes of the dwelling or any part of it, and

(ii) any other work reasonably required in connection with work falling within sub-paragraph (a) or this sub-paragraph.

[F1 (7A) In any case where—

(a) the most satisfactory way of dealing with the qualifying defect is substantially to demolish the building that consists of or includes the defective dwelling or a part of that building, and

(b) it is practicable to rebuild the building or part concerned on, or substantially on, its existing foundations and reconstruct the dwelling to the same, or substantially the same, plan,

the work required to carry out those operations shall be regarded for the purposes of this Part as work required to reinstate the defective dwelling.]

(8) The Executive shall not entertain an application under this Article in respect of a defective dwelling if at any time (whether before or after the designation in question comes into operation) application for[F2 renovation grant or common parts grant under Chapter II of Part III of the Housing (Northern Ireland) Order 2003] has been made in respect of the dwelling and the relevant works include the whole or any part of the work required to reinstate the defective dwelling unless—

(a) the application under that Part has been refused or has been withdrawn under paragraph (9), or

(b) the relevant works have been completed.

(9) A person who has applied for[F2 renovation grant or common parts grant under Chapter II of Part III of the Housing (Northern Ireland) Order 2003] in respect of any dwelling may, at any time when it is a defective dwelling, withdraw his application, whether or not it has been approved, if the relevant works have not been begun and those works include the whole or any part of the work required to reinstate the defective dwelling.

(10) In paragraphs (8) and (9) “the relevant works” has the same meaning as in[F2 Chapter II of Part III of the Housing (Northern Ireland) Order 2003].

(11) Where a person who is eligible for assistance in respect of a defective dwelling dies or disposes of his interest in the dwelling to a person to whom Article 5 applies (otherwise than on a disposal for value), this Part shall apply as if anything done or treated by virtue of this paragraph as done by or in relation to the person so eligible had been done by or in relation to his personal representatives or, as the case may be, the person acquiring the interest.

F1 1992 NI 15

F2 2003 NI 2