Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 26 March 2026
306. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the details of funding drawn down by each local authority over the past four years for the ready to build (serviced sites for new homes) scheme under the Croí Cónaithe towns fund, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23215/26]
View answer307. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the amount funding allocated each year since 2023 to the serviced ready to build (serviced sites for new homes) scheme under the croí cónaithe towns fund, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23216/26]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 306 and 307 together.
The Ready to Build Scheme, funded by the Croí Cónaithe Towns Fund, to support addressing vacancy, was launched in September 2022.
Under the scheme, local authorities identify suitable vacant sites in their ownership or purchase vacant sites in towns and villages and make them available for sale to individual purchasers for the purpose of building a principal private residence. Once serviced, the local authority will make the site available for sale at a discount on the market value of the site. The level of discount to the individual will depend on the level of servicing cost incurred by the local authority before the sale of the site, up to a maximum of €30,000.
Local authorities can be supported by my Department to make vacant sites available for sale in towns and villages throughout the country.
The scheme is managed and administered by local authorities on behalf of my Department. To date 32 sites have been made available for sale by 4 local authorities - 5 sites in Wicklow, 16 sites in Laois, 4 sites in Tipperary and 7 sites by Kildare County Council. No funding has been drawdown as yet by local authorities.
The new housing plan Delivering Homes, Supporting Communities commits to expanding the current Ready to Build Scheme through local authorities whereby they will service sites in, and close to, towns and villages to enable construction of clusters of homes. A mix of private, social and affordable homes can be delivered on the same site, creating new mixed tenure communities.
A further objective of the development of such a scheme would be to support Small and Medium Enterprise homebuilders who have land appropriately located but are constrained by financing or infrastructure considerations.
My Department is currently working on bringing forward this work in the first half of 2026, in line with the timeline published in the national housing plan.
