Joe Cooney (Clare, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Changes to the tenant in situ scheme are of significant concern for some constituents who face the very real prospect of homelessness because a scheme that was working has been effectively dismantled. When a landlord decided to sell, the local authority could step in, buy the property and keep the family in their home. It was straightforward and cost-effective and it worked, but last year the Department made a critical change. Local authorities cannot reclaim the cost of refurbishing properties they buy under the scheme. That might sound like a minor detail, but it is not. It is a decision that is making the scheme unworkable. The result is that councils are walking away from these purchases. They are not walking away because the family does not need the home but because the scheme is financially unsustainable for them.

In County Clare, this matter is particularly serious. Our private rental stock is older than the national average. Properties in our more rural and coastal locations often need more refurbishment before they can be let as social housing. We can see the impact in the numbers. In 2023, this scheme delivered 1,830 acquisitions. In 2024, it was 1,501. Last year, 2025, there were only 775 houses delivered.

At its peak, the tenant in situ scheme accounted for 46% of all homelessness prevention activity nationally. By December of last year, that figure had fallen to 11%. According to a recent media report, Clare County Council has only spent €1.45 million out of its €4 million allocation, which is very disappointing. I personally know of several cases where the council would not purchase the house because of the cost of refurbishing it to modern rental standards.

This scheme was one of the State’s most effective tools for preventing homelessness. There should be no difference to the public purse whether this is achieved through the purchase and renovation of a property a tenant already lives in or moving them into a new build and renovating it afterwards. People in houses should be the measure of success, not the number of houses built. Preventing homelessness is the goal, regardless of what we do.

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