Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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1175. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if he will provide a report on the repair and leasing scheme by county; the take-up of this scheme by landlords; the amount paid out; the number of units brought back into use; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1393/19]

Eoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael)
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The Repair and Leasing Scheme (RLS) has been developed to assist private property owners and local authorities or Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs) to harness the accommodation potential that exists in certain vacant properties across Ireland. The scheme is targeted at owners of vacant properties who cannot afford or access the funding needed to bring their properties up to the required standard for rental property. Subject to the suitability of the property for social housing, and the agreement of the property owner, the cost of the necessary repairs is met upfront by the local authority or an Approved Housing Body (AHB). This allows for the property owner to sign-up to a lease arrangement for a length that is linked to the value of the repairs, subject to a minimum of 5 years. The value of the repairs is then offset incrementally against the agreed rental payment over a defined period within the lease.

A property owner can either choose to arrange for a contractor to carry out the repairs themselves, or the local authority or AHB can arrange this instead. The relevant local authority determines eligibility for the scheme, having regard to the location and the suitability of the property for social housing and also taking into consideration the extent of the repairs that may be required. The maximum costs of repairs allowable under this initiative is €40,000 (€50,000 for former bedsits) and the property must be vacant for a period of not less than 12 months.

At the end of Q3 2018, a total of 1,214 applications had been received under the scheme; 122 agreements for lease had been signed and 48 homes had been delivered and tenanted. A detailed breakdown of the RLS scheme data by local authority up to end Q3 2018 is available on my Department’s website at the following link:

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Total capital expenditure under the scheme for 2017 and up to end Q3 2018 is set out in Tables 1 and 2. Data for the RLS scheme for Q4 2018 is currently being collected and will be published shortly.

Table 1: RLS Capital Expenditure 2017

Table 2: RLS Capital Expenditure to end Q3 2018