Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am advised by the Revenue Commissioners that it is not possible to provide a prescriptive set of criteria that a property must meet to be treated as not suitable for occupation as a dwelling house. They cannot provide the black-and-white criteria the Deputy seeks. However, the test for liability for property tax is whether the house is occupied. If the damage is so severe that people have moved out, there is no liability on the property. Once it is occupied, there is a liability for property tax and the question that arises is how much should be paid. That depends on the valuation and the valuation is a self-assessment exercise. However, the Revenue Commissioners have oversight of that and they might get back to somebody who has included a much lower valuation compared with the value of other houses on the road. There are auctioneers and valuers all over the country and they do not charge much. The auctioneer in a local village will write a statement of what they think the house is worth on the market and can outline that the reason they believe its value is lower than all the other houses on the street is because of severe damage due to X or Y. That is the process. It should work and I believe it will.