Mr. Pat Daly:

I thank the committee for meeting us. I will discuss the need for more student accommodation to relieve pressure on the rental market. In towns and city areas close to third-level colleges, student demand can add greatly to the pressure on the availability of properties to rent. The association would make the case for third-level institutions to provide a much greater level of on-campus or near-campus accommodation. This recommendation is grounded on the following factors: it would help to relieve pressure on the rented market in towns where there is a third-level accommodation; it would help to relieve the costs of accommodation for students and their parents; it would ensure greater value for the higher education grants paid out by the State where currently the maintenance element of the grant is in many cases effectively a transfer of State funds to a private landlord; and a number of third-level colleges have considerable land within their campus perimeters. This land is well serviced by public utilities and public transport making it eminently suitable for the provision of student accommodation on site. There is a case that planning applications from third-level colleges for expanding their academic infrastructure should be accompanied by a statement showing how it proposes to address the accommodation needs of any increase in the student body. We note that the Minister, Deputy Coveney, has already mentioned he will give consideration to promoting an accelerated provision of student accommodation and the association welcomes this as a way of freeing up property for wider tenant requirements as well as the other advantages outlined. The National Treasury Management Agency has proposed to make money available which would relieve pressure if the colleges took it up.

I will address the immediate need to deal with vacant local authority units or voids. One thing that will help the immediate housing need is tackling the issue of vacant local authority housing units or voids and addressing the unacceptable reletting times of up to 30 weeks in some instances. In its recent report, the National Oversight and Audit Commission, NOAC, concludes that average reletting times and costs vary considerably from six to 25 weeks where major works are not required, with costs ranging from €9,000 to €23,000 per unit. The NOAC report also indicates that a higher level of vacancies may be due in some cases to a local authority policy of holding vacancies in certain estates pending planned refurbishment work and in other instances to certain housing stock not being popular with waiting list applicants. The NOAC report, which was based on 2014 data, concluded that the reletting times from the date the previous tenant vacated the dwelling to the date of the new tenant’s first rent debit was a median of 24 weeks. The AILG feels it would be beneficial for individual local authorities to review their performance in this area to ensure a timely turnaround of vacant units to meet the significant demand that exists for social housing. Having discussed this issue with our members and after having consultations with a number of local authority housing officers we call on the committee to propose in its final report that local authorities have a dedicated ring-fenced rolling budget on an annual basis for pre-letting repairs costs. This rolling budget from central funds could be dependent on matching funding from the local authority’s own resources which would help with the timely reletting of vacant housing units. This would also give greater autonomy to each local authority to prioritise the level of repairs required to bring their vacant units to reletting standards, taking their immediate housing needs into account. It is a slow process and 30 weeks is not good enough. There is a house available in a local authority and the new tenant has to wait 30 weeks to get that house. It is not good enough.

I ask Councillor Lacey to address No. 9.