Housing cited 'huge priority' ahead of election

Housing pressures on the Isle of Man are mounting and are a "huge priority" in the lead up to the House of Keys general election, a Douglas Councillor has warned.

It comes as the majority of the 82 candidates standing for a seat as an MHK have cited housing a top priority for them.

Councillor Natalie Byron-Teare said the authority was the island's largest social housing landlord, managing 2,400 properties with 250 currently on the waiting list.

She said there was "a huge disparity between where the rental is for social housing compared to private rental. Huge disparity".

Byron‑Teare said the gap was leaving many working households stuck in the middle, where they were earning too much to qualify for support, but not enough to afford rising private rentals.

She said: "The threshold for a family living in social housing is £68,000. The first‑time buyers scheme has a cap of £57,000–£58,000."

This meant people eligible for social housing, but earning more than £58,000, could not access the first-time buyers scheme, she said.

"That doesn't quite sit right with me," she added.

Byron-Teare said the council had built 160 new energy‑efficient apartments in recent years, replacing older stock, and has submitted a 10‑year plan to government outlining further developments.

But she said progress is being held back by fragmented decision‑making.

"At the moment we are siloed. Many departments and authorities dealing on their own. It should be simple, we're a small population," she explained.

She also criticised the lack of local authority representation on the island's Housing Agency Board.

"We don't have a seat at that table. Surely our experience would be vital."

The mismatch over wages and thresholds was a concern echoed by Karl Brew, manager of homelessness charity Housing Matters.

He said they had about 100 people using their services, 45 of which had "no fixed abode".

The island was dealing with "hidden homelessness", he said.

"We're not seeing street homelessness, but we are seeing people sleeping in vans. That's the reality of the island that we don't see," he explained.

Brew said a further 20 people were currently in emergency accommodation provided through Manx Care, as part of a homelessness pathway setup two years ago, aligning the charity's services with the healthcare provider.

But Brew said the island urgently needed more social housing, more private rental options and new forms of supported "wraparound" accommodation, which could include "pod‑style" units or repurposed government buildings, to help people who are not yet ready to live independently.

Elsewhere a number of residents have raised concerns that the number of holiday homes and holiday rentals on the island was narrowing the market for local people hoping to get onto the property ladder.

Jack McLean, a musician working in a music shop in Peel, said: "With all the holiday homes over here, it just makes it more difficult for first-time buyers because it's just less housing, less affordable housing".

Steve and Phil said holiday lets along the seafront were their biggest concern.

"There are so many holiday lets around, and it's just killing the old part of the city," they said.

They suggested politicians introduce a holiday let cap of "10% or 15% in one particular area" to "leave the life in the streets."

Out of season, they said, the town falls quiet, with little open beyond the pubs.

Jack Mylrea, who has worked in a Peel fish and chip shop since he was 15, said his quality of life improved when he was able to buy a house with his partner at the age of 24.

He said buying became "very, very hard" after Covid as prices rose, but he described feeling "lucky" when the house he grew up in went on the market.

"Since then I've been quite content" he said, living only a couple of minutes away from his work.

Voters head to the polls on 24 September to vote for the 24 future MHKs for the next five years.

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