Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 28 April 2026
724. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage whether the full voids return allocation was drawn down in 2025; the date the full allocation was drawn down; and the number of homes that remained vacant at 31 December 2025. [30541/26]
Amharc ar fhreagra725. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of homes that have had stock audits completed; whether he has seen preliminary results of these stock audits; and whether he intends to fund legacy issues identified in these audits. [30542/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 724 and 725 together.
The management and maintenance of local authority housing stock, including pre-letting repairs to vacant properties, is a matter for each 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. To this end, they must make adequate budgetary provision for housing repairs and cyclical maintenance utilising the significant housing rental income available to them as part of the annual budgetary process.
Notwithstanding the legal obligation on local authorities, €40 million will be provided as a contribution towards the remediation of local authority housing through my Department's Planned Maintenance and Voids Programme this year.
Details on funding recouped to local authorities under the Voids Programme to end 2025 is available on my Department's website at www.gov.ie/en/collection/0906a-other-local-authority-housing-scheme-statistics/#voids-programme. The programme supported the return of almost 2,200 vacant social homes to productive use by local authorities in 2025, with more than €24 million provided by my Department to support local authority efforts in this regard. A further €6.9m was recouped to the local authorities to complete stock condition surveys and to support planned maintenance works on social homes.
My Department works closely with local authorities to promote preventative, planned maintenance of social housing, informed by stock condition surveys. Local authorities continue to progress surveys, with over 14,186 completed to mid-April this year. I expect all local authority social homes will be surveyed over the next four or five years. It is for local authorities to develop planned maintenance works programmes arising from the findings of their stock condition surveys. Base funding of €150 per survey per property is available in 2026, with a €100 top-up grant available to local authorities that have at least 15% of their total social housing stock surveyed by the end of this year.
Local authorities will always have a level of vacancy in their housing stock. This will fluctuate over time as tenancy surrender and re-letting of dwellings is an ongoing process. Accordingly, data on the number of vacant homes are not routinely collated by my Department.
That said, statistics in relation to social homes, at a point in time, are published by the National Oversight and Audit Commission (NOAC) in its Annual Reports on Performance Indicators in Local Authorities, including Kilkenny. 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/.
In line with previous years, NOAC data for 2025 will likely be published in the Autumn. In the meantime, data on vacancy in social housing, at any specific moment in time, should be sought directly from the respective local authorities.
