15-05-2025
Local councils need to take back control of building houses
I've been writing about the housing crisis for nearly three years, and one theme has remained constant: a generational divide between those who own homes and those locked out of the market, including yours truly. But recent developments suggest the Government now aims to align both groups in shared sacrifice.
The Sunday Independent recently reported planning rules would be relaxed to encourage older people to 'rightsize' into smaller homes. The goal is to free up under-occupied housing stock by having older generations downsize, thus making room for younger families.
While this marks a shift from the tired 'supply, supply, supply' mantra, pushing older people from homes they have raised their children and lived in for decades is a controversial solution. It sounds downright cruel.
Still, the problem of under-occupation is real. According to the ESRI, more than 80% of people aged 65+ live in homes too large for their current needs. Eurostat defines under-occupied homes as those with more rooms than deemed necessary.
In response, the Government has proposed the older persons housing financial contribution scheme which will see seniors sell their homes to local authorities or on the open market and move into smaller accommodation.
Some may argue this infringes on private property rights and ignores the emotional attachment one may have to their home. But the State already owns many of these properties so shouldn't it be allowed to reallocate its housing stock in a crisis?
Research by entrepreneur Karl Deeter in 2018 found more than 12,000 empty bedrooms in Dublin's council housing, with many four- and five-bedroom homes occupied by just one person. That situation has barely changed since then.
So how did we get to a situation where elderly people live alone in large houses while young renters pay €2,000 a month for one-bed apartments with the kitchen beside the bed, while some families are forced to raise their children in a hotel?
Simply put, the State, more specifically local councils, have ceased providing housing. Ireland once built vast numbers of council homes, even when the country was far poorer than it is today.
The 1922 Million Pound Scheme provided grants for local authorities to build thousands of homes. In the 1930s, Fianna Fáil backed similar efforts, resulting in more than 100,000 social homes by the mid-1950s. These estates were well-planned and built with families in mind — three bedrooms, gardens, and solid design by renowned architects like Herbert Simms.
Crucially, and relevant within the current context, when a tenant died, councils simply reallocated the home to another family. No one was evicted; no one was downsized.
But, over time, the shift away from localised provision of housing shifted to centralised property allocation, reliant on market forces. In 1966, Ireland implemented its own version of Margaret Thatcher's 'Right to Buy', allowing council tenants to purchase their homes. By the early 1970s, homeownership had surged to 68%, and two-thirds of council homes became private without being replaced.
By the 1980s, local authorities were disempowered. Fianna Fáil gutted housing budgets, abolished grants, and left councils without the means to build. Meanwhile, banks were deregulated and allowed to flood the market with cheap credit.
The result was a boom in speculative development and buy-to-let landlords. Even at the peak of the Celtic Tiger boom in 2006 with the construction of 90,000 homes, just 6% were social housing. Piecemeal efforts to actually build social and affordable housing was done via so-called Part V planning regulations, which mandated 20% of zoned land for private development had to encompass social or affordable housing, which prolonged the time low-income people acquired homes, contextualising current long waiting lists.
The stalled housing regeneration project on Kilmore Road, Knocknaheeney. Councils are severely under-resourced. They lack not only funds but also planners and tradespeople. Picture: Larry Cummins
After the crash, things worsened. Instead of rebuilding the social housing system, the State leaned on private landlords. In December 2010, Fianna Fáil's junior housing minister Michael Finneran noted this policy overhaul when he stated the government would reduce 'reliance on construction and acquisition… to allow for a greater role for the Rental Accommodation Scheme and leasing' which, he claimed would, 'offer the most effective and efficient response to market realities and housing need'.
In time, the Rental Accommodation Scheme and later Housing Assistance Payment (Hap) would cost taxpayers €1bn a year. Before this shift in 2014, rents were half their current price.
Now, as the crisis deepens, the Government is proposing moving elderly people from their homes to make space. But doing so risks worsening intergenerational resentment. Rather than risking worsening social cohesion, councils need to be equipped with the tools necessary for housing delivery.
UCC political scientist Theresa Reidy noted in 2018 that just 7% of public spending in Ireland is controlled by local authorities. In contrast, local governments in the past were the backbone of housing provision.
According to Dr Lorcan Sirr of TUD, councils could build rural homes for under €300,000 — far cheaper than private developments costing up to €900,000. He argues decentralising housing provision would allow councils to build homes tailored to local needs, faster and more affordably.
But councils are severely under-resourced. They lack not only funds but also planners and tradespeople. Ireland is short 350-400 planners, and many councils rely on private contractors due to a lack of expertise and manpower. There's enough zoned land for over 400,000 homes, yet approval takes years under a burdensome four-stage process.
The Housing Commission has called for more resources to address vacancy, currently around 4,400 homes annually.
Research by Cillian Doyle at Trinity College shows councils struggle to employ apprentices and skilled workers, relying instead on a slow, costly public procurement process. After the crash, many large firms offering apprenticeships went bust, leaving a skills vacuum now filled by financially strained small builders.
Doyle has argued local authorities could be crucial in filling current shortages by guaranteeing a minimum number of places with specific criteria based on the number of homes needed in each local area.
If the housing crisis is to be ameliorated, policymakers must restore local councils as central players in housing provision. They understand their communities better than detached officials in the Custom House and the Office of the Planning Regulator. They have the land but need the resources.
Encouraging downsizing among the elderly may make statistical sense, but it is morally questionable. We cannot fix a housing crisis by forcing or incentivising people out of their homes. We must build publicly, locally, affordably, and at scale to meet the needs of local communities.
