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DESPITE SOME POSITIVES, the various bank CEOs’ answers on how they’re working with former Priory Hall residents have prompted huge concern amongst the group, a spokesperson has said.
Called before the Oireachtas Finance Committee to address the country’s wider mortgage crisis, the heads of Bank of Ireland, AIB, Ulster Bank and Permanent TSB were also pressed on their response to the deadlock over the abandoned Donaghmede complex.
There was a positive reception amongst the Committee members to AIB CEO David Duffy’s response that the lender wanted to put a “long-term permanent solution in place” for its 18 mortgage holders in Priory Hall, and to Duffy’s commitment that the bank would begin engaging with them all in a matter of weeks.
Whilst welcoming AIB’s announcement, spokesperson for the residents Graham Usher told TheJournal.ie that there was also concern amongst the group over Duffy’s confirmation that the bank was stepping outside of the mediation process set up to reach a solution for all residents.
Duffy told the TDs and Senators that: “In the interest of clarity, we are not going to wait for the process. We are going to solve it now”
AIB’s head of financial solutions Brendan O’Connor added: “It is a genuine offer to try and resolve this issue outside of a process that cannot seem to move”
Ulster Bank CEO Jim Brown’s response to the Committee that they were working through the problem with each of their 12 Priory Hall mortgage-holders on a “case by case basis” underlined the concern that banks are now moving outside of the process.
Brown repeated several times that each case would be reviewed individually, and Usher said this had prompted “massive worry” among some residents.
To be honest with you, people are quite panicked by it.
Usher repeated the residents’ call for a meeting with Environment Minister Phil Hogan, who said again this week that he couldn’t get involved for fear of affecting the resolution of the case.
It’s nearly two years since 256 residents were evacuated from the complex due to fire safety concerns. Dublin City Council has been housing the families in temporary homes since then.
(Image: Screengrab via Oireachtas.ie)
As for the responses of the other bank bosses, Permanent TSB CEO Jeremy Masding said the bank would take an identical approach to that of AIB, although he said he couldn’t commit to a timescale, adding:
There is something unique about [Priory Hall] and therefore we need to have a level of empathy and sympathy which we will do.
Bank of Ireland’s Richie Boucher told the Committee the bank was open to “a range of solutions”, and after questioning said he would look at what AIB had offered.
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If a few government TD’s owned these apartments, it would have been sorted ages ago. Then bankers, developers and other professionals responsible for this should all be jailed.
The only reason the banks want to do this is so they can screw the owners out of the limelight .. I felt so sorry for that woman on the late late last night … Get up off your arse Kenny and sort this once and for all ..
Economic parasites.
This post might not make me popular – Priory Hall is not the bank problem and they should not have to pick up pay off the tab.
Priory Hall is the governments issue plain and simple.
The dept of Environment oversee planning regulations. Massive contributions are paid by developers to councils as part of the planning process.
The councils are in turn supposed to ensure regulations are upheld. Yet again the systems to protect us have failed us.
The real fools are you and I who continue to fund a broken system and do nothing about it.
As for Priory Hall, it should be demolished, rebiult to proper standards and given back to the owners who I’m sure would be happy to continue to pay their mortgages.
I agree that the govt have a part to pay as the council surveyors should have spotted the problem.
However, when you take out a mortgage, the bank insists on a survey of the property. This is because such property is collateral against the risk of payment default.
This to me is tacit admission that the banks entered in to an agreement with eyes open and should be prepared to accept a loss on the mortgage with no chance of recovery thru resale of property.
I agree with you…. I feel very sorry for the people who in good faith bought their dream home… but the bank also entered into the agreement in good faith.. the planning department/ council/ architects/ builders who signed off on supposedly good structurally sound apartments should be accountable. .
In simple terms if u write a cheque for an item u happily purchase and later find it to be faulty.. your issue is not with the bank whose cheque covered your purchase…. but with the supplier/ manufacturer…. and that is who you would approach and expect pay… not the company who issued you a cheque book….
It’s the governments fault. They. Fas and the unions allowed companies employ dozens of apprentices working with no supervision or maybe one or two qualified workers. The system is flawed. Companies should not be allowed employ more than 2 apprentices per qualified persons. They should set up an independent trading standards off like in the uk run by qualified tradesmen, engineers ect. Not government civil servants and every bit of building work should need permission in order to protect the customer from cowboy builders
Bank’s surveyors did not do their job either. So whilst directly causing the problem they played their part. Litany of failures and not one accountable.
Time to knock and rebuild. Perhaps the 3% tax we have paid since since the 80s to cover AIBs previous debacle could fund the rebuild. All mortgages to be written down to current value.
Independent investigation to be held. Hogan not to lead it. Head of Irish Water to be stood down pending investigation. Two months will cover it
Niall I’m sure the apprentices didn’t decide one day to put up a stud partition between apartments
@Francis: Following your cheque analogy, if the bank insisted on proof of quality and value before issuing the cheque and insisting on having a legal interest in the goods you are buying (eg on your insurance policy), then it is only right that they must share the pain.
I think ICTU should call a general strike over this. Instead of parading in costumes to commemorate the 1913 lockout, all ordinary workers should be marching to highlight that in 2013 not much has changed.
Stephen
Does this idea of yours extend to the downing of tools by workers in the middle of the worst economic crisis in the history of the State?
Is there any other damage you would like the ICTU to cause while they are at it or is that enough for another day or two !
What a ridiculous, irresponsible and childish suggestion
What’s ridiculous is that ordinary working people are evacuated from their homes and some two years later, with tragic consequences, nobody has taken any responsibility for the mess that these people have been landed with.
TWO YEARS!! And all the trade union movement can do is organise a pantomime fancy-dress show downtown in order to ‘commemorate’ the 1913 lockout. Lest we forget, it was the squalid living conditions that Dublin families faced on a daily basis that ultimately propelled the workers to unionise in the first place, to fight for better pay and better living conditions, and to stand by their fellow workers.
What’s ridiculous is that in a country where massive bank debt can be ‘crystallised’ into national debt at the stroke of a pen, that no-one can find a solution to this mess after two years.
This is a national disgrace. There’s a man in his grave over it already and the usual cast of idiots continue to kick the whole situation around amongst themselves.
A few simple actions would resolve the whole thing: 1, the residents get NAMA properties convenient to their places of work and their children’s schools, 2, the banks eat the losses on any outstanding mortgages for the period that the residents have been out of the homes they initially bought, 3, anyone in DCC found to have had anything to do with certifying Priory Hall as being fit to live in should be sent to jail for 5 years.
Easy peasy japanesey.
Will it happen?
No.
Some Republic.
Watched Stephanie Meehan on the late late show last night..As she described getting the letters that finish with your home is at risk etc..but as said said “we didnt have a home” and her description of being “shafted at every turn”
Should be played on a loop for everyone involved to see what they have done and continue to do to families .
How they can sleep at night beats me..
If I buy a top with a hole in it I hand it back to the shop, the builder/developer should have all those mortgages applied back to him/her.
I dread to think how many more Priory Halls are out there.
According to Mick Eallace , Priory is only the start of it. There’s plenty more to come. I pity anyone caught up in this mess.
My thoughts exactly Darragh , and I think thats why Kenny and Co are slow to get involved because secretly they probably know of a dozen or more Priory Halls out there
Franco
I don’t believe the Taoiseach concern extends beyond the serious danger of exposing the State to the legal risk of establishing a precedence . From my own perspective I wouldn’t buy a house in this country that has been built in the last eight years unless I personally knew the builder and his crew.
More than a dozen.while probably not many as bad as priory hall I would imagine huge amounts dont meet standards.
That’s the crux of the problem, they are scared of setting a precedent which they can’t afford.
“AIB CEO David Duffy’s response that the lender wanted to put a “long-term permanent solution in place” for its 18 mortgage holders in Priory Hall, and to Duffy’s commitment that the bank would begin engaging with them all in a matter of weeks”.
I wouldn’t blame the residents for being worried.
This type of statement is normally bankers code for, sending their customers legal letters and aggressively repossessing their homes.
I’d be very worried.
A real permanent solution in banking terms would see us all dead and all our property and wealth being surrendered to the bank.
Vermin!
Repossession of the homes is not in the banks interest. The properties are a liability not an asset. There is zero resale value and by becoming the owner will become liable for demolition costs.
I don’t know about that Alan.
Even with all the personal insolvency legislation BS being spewed from our (banker puppet) government.
As it stands in Ireland today, whether they repossess the property or not the banks are still permitted to follow the homeowner to the grave for the debt.
Phil Hogan step up and take control, protect the innocent residents of Priory hall from the money grabbing banks.
Bwahahahaha!!!
Phil Hogan would rather gouge his own eyes out than take a stand on this.
Watch, he’ll stand on the sideline wringing his hands while DCC have the neck to drag these residents through the courts!
It’s a fu(king disgrace.
The residence shouldn’t pay a cent until they get their homes back. How the hell any one can support the banks position here is beyond belief. It’s amazing how bank employees who 10 years ago were ramming loans into people’s letterbox’s are now sending threatening letters to people who can’t pay. The reason our country is as broke as it is is because billions went into the banks. Surely the government who gave the banks our money can offer those in trouble some protection now.
When i feel bad about my own situation i just spare a thought for those people who are involved in this mess. Can only imagine how sickening it must be poor feckers
In my opinion its not really the banks issue , the people really at fault here are the state employees who signed off on the project first day , wonder if anyone has been fired ? Most definitely not . We must realise the banks do not give a crap about anything other that making profits , still feel sorry for the poor families facing another christmas out of their homes.
Dave the banks are at fault because not only have the residents lost a home but they cant buy another because they are in a debt trap. The banks attitude was if their wage is OK then who gives a sh1t if the property is overvalued by several multiples or in this case a heap of junk.Of course the State and the builders are at fault too and criminality negliguent or fraudulent.
This does not surprise me one bit. This is the ultimate in lending negligence. If the bank wont concede to this then what hope do other people in arrears have. I cant understand why the residents would even think about paying them.
We bailed out the banks when they bankrupted the country. These people through no fault of their own are paying mortgages on homes not fit to live in. Let the government take on their mortgages and come to some arrangement with the banks. Then these people are at least debt free to try and start again. One man is dead. Enough is enough. I for one would prefer to see my taxes go towards something like this than bailing out bond holders.
Disgraceful how they have been treated. This should jave been sorted out long ago. Watched Stephanie Meehan on the late late. Left in no doubt were the blame lies in the passing of her partner. THE VERMON BANKERS.
Couple of necessary points need to be raised:
Did the people who bought properties in priory hall not get their own surveyor prior to buying the property? This is standard when buying a house though perhaps because it was apartments, assumptions were made….
There is also the old common law principle of caveat emptor that needs to be considered.
Short answer Im sure they did. But it was a general snaglist and not a structural survey that was advised on new build properties. A structural survey was not the norm. With hindsight buyers should do this but they were not advised to at the time.
Assumptions are the mother of all cock ups as they say, while not wanting to heap blame on those that bought as they were no different to anyone else at that time, there was a general culture of irresponsibility by all parties involved. Everyone took short cuts which has led to this tragic case. In a sense it’s a microcosm of the Celtic tiger property boom where a series of individual mistakes leads to disaster.
@Youneek Its not an assumption on the part of the buyer. Having a snaglist was standard procedure for buyers and to the best of my knowledge still is. A structural survey was advised for old builds or fixer uppers. These were the rules which in most cases were followed to the letter.
Politicians are elected by the people to represent and to ensure that fairness and justice is enforced in our country. If a politician states that he/she cannot get involved in a situation like Priory Hall which is no fault of the residents then he/she is not doing their job and they should resign or sacked. Minister Hogan is nothing more than a disgrace and as for Enda Kenny well enough said.
The real problem is that Priory Hall is just the tip of the iceberg?
There is a development in Lucan which breaches Fire Regs – Developer Nama’d – and another in Ashbourne where the residents have just been told the balconies are structurally unsafe – builder in liquidation.
The government are terrified that if they get involved in Priory Hall that they’ll be on the hook for every other dodgy development in this great little country of ours!
Bankers are the Judas of the Irish Nation
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