Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 7 December 2023
83. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the amount of money paid out under the vacant property refurbishment grant in each month since it was established; if he will provide detail in relation to the qualification criteria for the grant, the amount of applications received for the grant and the amount of grants approved, in tabular form.; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53693/23]
View answerIn July 2022 I launched the Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant under the Croí Cónaithe Towns Fund, which supports bringing vacant and derelict properties back into use as homes.
In May 2023, I announced a revised grant rate of up to a maximum of €50,000 available for the refurbishment of vacant properties for occupation as a principal private residence and also for properties which will be made available for rent, including the conversion of a property which has not previously been used as residential. Where the refurbishment costs are expected to exceed the standard grant of up to €50,000, a further maximum top-up grant of up to €20,000 is available where the property is confirmed to be derelict or where the property is already on the local authority’s Derelict Sites Register. This brings the total grant available for a derelict property up to a maximum of €70,000.
For an applicant and property to meet the conditions of the grant the following criteria must be met:
• The property must have been vacant for 2 years or more;
• The property must have been build prior to 2008;
• An applicant must own the property or be in the process of buying it;
• Applicants must live in the home as their principal private residence or make it available to rent on completion of qualifying works to the dwelling;
• Applicants must provide evidence of tax compliance, with tax clearance from Revenue;
• Where the property is being made available for rent, an applicant must provide a declaration that the refurbished property will made available for rent and a tenancy registered with the Residential Tenancy Board (RTB);
• Applicants must have the grant application approved before the work, in respect of which the grant is being applied for, commences.
• On completion of the qualifying works; applicants must agree to the clawback conditions;
The cost of the Grant to date is €4.3 million. This includes recoupment to local authorities for grants paid and administrative support to local authorities.
My Department publishes data on applications for the Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant on its website on a quarterly basis, see gov.ie - Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant statistics (www.gov.ie)
