Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 3 March 2026
600. Deputy Conor Sheehan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage Government the total number of properties acquired by local authorities under the local authority tenant-in-situ scheme, broken down by county, for 2024 and 2025, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16668/26]
Amharc ar fhreagra607. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the annual spend by his Department on the tenant-in-situ scheme for each year from 2020 to 2025; and the number of units purchased under this scheme in each year, in tabular form. [16693/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 600 and 607 together.
Tenancy sustainment, or tenant-in-situ, is not a stand alone programme or scheme. Rather it is a priority category introduced as part of the my Department's Social Housing Second Hand Acquisitions Programme in 2023.
Tenant in situ is an option for local authorities to support households in the most precarious housing situations. Such acquisitions are, and will continue to be, available to local authorities for use as a last resort when all other options have been exhausted.
However, they will never be the sole, or even the primary, option. The default first options should almost always be securing the sustainment of the tenancy with the landlord, securing alternative accommodation through the Tenancy Sustainment and Placefinder services, or allocating a local authority or Approved Housing Body tenancy via a new build home or re-let.
Ultimately, the delivery of new additional social homes is the only strategic solution to address long-term homelessness, with allocations from new and existing local authority and AHB social homes the primary means through which social housing qualified households should be accommodated. With the social housing new build programme gathering momentum and providing more social housing, this will allow for a reduced reliance on the second hand acquisitions programme over the coming years.
Comprehensive programme-level statistics for social housing delivery are published on my Department's website, including for social housing acquisitions. Data are currently available to end Q3 2025. Q4 2025 delivery statistics are currently being compiled and validated and will be published in due course.
The data show that 1,830 and 1,501 acquisitions were completed in 2023 and 2024 respectively, including 1,081 acquisitions in 2023 and 1,054 acquisitions in 2024 to help sustain tenancies for social housing tenants in the private rented sector.
Provisional data show around 775 acquisitions were completed and drawn down from my Department in 2025, with some 500 of these tenancy sustainment acquisitions.
Some €417 million and €520 million was recouped to local authorities under the Second Hand Acquisitions Programme in 2023 and 2024 respectively. While and initial €325 million was available for draw down under acquisitions in 2025, and this was increased by a further €50m for drawdown over 2025 and 2026 only €290 million was ultimately drawn down by local authorities in 2025.
An analysis of the spend on acquisitions across the categories between 2023 and 2025 is currently underway and will be completed in due course.
