Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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778. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the number of vacant houses offered to the Housing Agency and/or his Department to purchase; and the number of those houses offered by banks. [39409/17]

Eoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael)
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The Housing Agency has been offered 1,700 vacant units for purchase of which 817 have been offered by banks. Within this, the Agency has been offered a total of 1,090 units specifically for its Acquisition Fund, of which 745 have been offered by banks.

Once properties have been offered for consideration, the Agency co-ordinates with local authorities regarding their local social housing requirements.  Not all properties offered are deemed suitable. Properties may be physically or financially unsuitable (for example, poor quality dwellings or dwellings above price limits). It should also be noted that properties can be withdrawn during the process by the vendor due to legal or other issues. 

As of 31 August 2017, the Agency has had bids accepted on 450 properties. Contracts have been signed for 392 dwellings and 324 of these purchases have closed.  Overall, the objective of the Acquisition Fund is to acquire some 1,600 units over the period to 2020 for social housing use. 

My Department does not receive offers to purchase vacant houses but rather funds acquisitions in response to applications from local authorities and Approved Housing Bodies.