Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 10 June 2026
132. Deputy Shónagh Ní Raghallaigh asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of social homes currently vacant for longer than six months, by local authority area; the reasons for such vacancies; and the measures being taken to return these properties to use as quickly as possible. [44218/26]
View answerThe management and maintenance of local authority social homes, including pre-letting repairs and the re-tenanting of vacant properties, is a matter for each individual local authority under s.58 of the Housing Act 1966. Local authorities must also ensure all tenanted properties comply with the provisions of the Housing (Standards for Rented Houses) Regulations 2019. In respect of allocations, s.22 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009 requires housing authorities to establish an allocation scheme that determines the order of priority for letting available dwellings.
Notwithstanding, my Department will provide some €260 million as a contribution towards the remediation and maintenance of local authority homes through various funding programmes in 2026, with €40 million alone allocated to a revised Planned Maintenance and Voids Programme to specifically support the efficient turnaround of casually vacant homes by local authorities. I recently advised local authorities of revised arrangements under this programme, which will effectively link the funding available to improved stock management efficiency. These arrangements will incentivise lower vacancy levels in local authority housing, support quicker re-letting of homes, and encourage increased investment in maintenance and management of these homes. The new arrangements will apply initially to Planned Maintenance funding from 2027, followed by Voids funding from 2028. The new approach has been tailored to the help ensure that the current average national vacancy rate of 2.75% will fall below 2% and that the current average national turnaround time falls from 35.56 weeks to a maximum of 12 weeks.
My Department has been working with local authorities and Approved Housing Bodies to identify ways to reduce the time taken to allocate and tenant social homes. Engagement and analysis with stakeholders has highlighted a range of factors that can affect vacancy durations. Standardising procedures based on established good practice offers the greatest opportunity to improve efficiency across the allocation process and minimise vacancies. To support this, my Department, in collaboration with local authorities and the Housing Agency, has recently issued updated guidance aimed at embedding best practice and strengthening data collection and reporting.
Data on the quantum of social homes vacant at a moment in time, the length of time they've been vacant, the reasons they're vacant, and the steps being taken to bring them back to productive use, are a matter solely for local authorities.
That said, data on the management of social homes are published by the National Oversight and Audit Commission (NOAC) in its Annual Reports on Performance Indicators in Local Authorities. These reports provide a range of information in relation to social housing stock, including levels of vacancy and average turnaround times in local authority owned properties.
The most recent NOAC report for 2024 is available at www.noac.ie/noac_publications/report-77-noac-performance-indicator-report-2024/.
