Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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9. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the schedule of stock condition surveys of local authority properties detailing which developments in which local authorities will be surveyed in 2021 and 2022. [33762/21]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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There are approximately 140,000 local authority social housing properties in the State. it is important that local authorities ensure the optimum management and maintenance of this valuable State asset, that the homes comply with relevant standards and that vacancy and letting turnaround times are kept to a minimum.

My Department is committed to supporting local authorities in the optimum management and maintenance of their housing stock and is working with them to transition from a largely response based approach to a strategic planned maintenance approach based on stock condition surveys.

A national standardised stock condition survey template has been agreed, as has the implementation of a centrally hosted ICT system to support asset management. The ICT system is currently being procured by the Local Government Management Agency. The stock condition surveys will begin once the ICT system is in place and will be completed over a four to five year period. The start has been delayed somewhat during Covid restrictions and it is likely to be 2022 when surveys commence.

Funding support from my Department is important in order to drive high standards and minimum vacancy within the local authority housing stock.

In 2020, the largest ever voids programme was funded by my Department at a cost of €56.4m. This allowed 3,607 properties to be refurbished and made available for allocation. A similar programme is underway in 2021 at a cost of €44.7m to remediate 3,000 homes. The enhanced voids programmes in 2020 and 2021 will significantly reduce  legacy vacancy within the local authority housing stock and put both the local authorities and my Department in a good position to transition from a voids responsive approach to a planned maintenance funded approach to stock maintenance over the period 2022 and 2023.

My Department will continue to support local authorities under the existing programmes of stock improvement works, such as, Voids, Disabled Persons Grants and Remedial Works Scheme during the transition to a planned maintenance approach over the years 2022 and 2023 but it is equally important that local authorities ensure adequate budgetary provision is made for housing repairs and cyclical maintenance as part of their annual budget process.