€91m To Be Invested In Housing

A housing investment worth over €91m has been announced by the Government.

The funding will be used across a range of housing schemes to make more social housing available and to improve housing for people with disabilities, as well as retrofitting homes to improve energy efficiency.

Over 1,000 vacant social housing units will be refurbished and tenanted by people on the social housing waiting list at a cost of over €20m countrywide. Dublin City and Cork City are receiving the largest allocations, with priority going to families facing homelessness. Funding was allocated to the local authorities with the greatest potential to deliver units quickly and address needs. Over 2,300 units were brought on stream last year with an average cost of refurbishment of €11,277.

A further €50.5m will be made available for Housing Adaptations for Older People and People with a Disability living in private houses. This will allow extensions to be built for people with a disability, as well as housing adaptations to improve mobility aid (such as stair lifts, access ramps) with more funding set to come later in the year. A further €11m will be made available for local authority house adaptations and extensions to meet the needs of tenants with a disability and to deal with overcrowding.

A further €20m has been made available for the improvement of local authority houses to make them more energy efficient. This programme continues to sustain and create jobs while making a significant contribution to Ireland's carbon emissions reduction targets and energy reduction targets for 2020, resulting in warmer homes and lower energy bills for local authority tenants.

As part of the EU Operational Programme 2014-2020, the energy efficiency works on social housing will attract funding under the ERDF. This will see EU co-financing of 50% of eligible public investment under these programmes.

(CD)