Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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87. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government his plans to put measures in place to support the refurbishment of vacant property in towns and villages; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1427/21]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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My Department is focused on ensuring that existing housing stock is utilised to its fullest extent including a targeted, effective and co-ordinated approach to identifying and tackling vacancy across Ireland.

The National Vacant Housing Reuse Strategy was published in 2018 and contains a range of objectives and key actions to be pursued in partnership with stakeholders and agencies across the housing sector to address vacancy in our housing stock. There are a number of supports available from my Department to owners to bring vacant housing stock back into use including:

The Repair and Leasing Schemeis available to assist private property owners, local authorities and Approved Housing Bodies in utilising existing vacant housing stock throughout the country. 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. If eligible for the scheme, the property owner can avail of a loan of up to €60,000 from the local authority to carry out the refurbishment of property.

- The Buy and Renew initiativeparticularly focuses on older vacant homes to help tackle the problem of dereliction and improve the appearance of the community with the added value of delivery social housing units. It provides the option for suitable properties to be purchased rather than leased.

In December 2018, my Department published the Bringing Back Homes Manual for the Reuse of Existing Buildings.

The Bringing Back Homes manual is aimed at property owners, members of the public, local authorities and stakeholders in the construction industry who are interested in developing vacant buildings. It provides clear and detailed guidance on current policy and regulatory requirements that apply to this form of development.

The manual also supports the work of the vacant homes offices in local authorities, which create a central point of contact for those interested in developing existing buildings. These offices are a useful resource to assist developers and owners in clarifying the regulatory requirements that exist and how they apply to development, thus reducing uncertainty and complexity but maintaining safe, sustainable and quality standards for homes.