Christopher O'Sullivan (Cork South West, Fianna Fail)
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59. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government The measures that are being taken to increase the number of rental properties on the market in the Cork south west area; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [59621/22]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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Housing for Allis the Government’s plan to increase the supply of housing to an average of 33,000 per year over the next decade. Over 300,000 new homes will be built by the end of 2030, including a projected 90,000 social homes, 36,000 affordable purchase homes and 18,000 cost rental homes. Increasing our social and affordable housing stock will help tackle affordability and demand issues in the rental market.

The plan is working and supply is increasing. The Government is confident the 2022 target of 24,600 new build homes in 2022 will be met. 20,807 new homes completed in the first three quarters of the year, more than the whole of 2021 (20,560) or any other year since the CSO series began in 2011.

A record €4.5 billion in State housing investment will be made available in 2023. This will underpin the ambitious Housing for Allplan and deliver the largest state home building programme ever with 9,100 direct build social homes and 5,500 affordable homes. €1.3 billion will be spent on affordability measures in 2023.

The Government will deliver 18,000 cost rental homes by 2030. These homes are now beginning to come into the market, some of which were advertised at rates that are 40% to 50% lower than market rent. Hundreds of cost rental homes have already been tenanted since the passing of the Affordable Housing Act in July 2021. We are further supporting Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs) in the delivery of cost rental homes by increasing the Cost Rental Equity Loan from a maximum of 30% to a max of 45% per project.

Along with local authorities and AHBs, the Land Development Agency (LDA) is an important delivery partner. The LDA have launched Project Tosaigh, an initiative designed to unlock land in private ownership that has planning permission but where delivery has stalled due to financing and other constraints. The LDA now has a pipeline of projects anticipated to deliver affordable for sale and cost rental homes. The first of these homes have been advertised for sale by the local authorities in Cork and Waterford and the first cost rental homes in Dublin have been recently advertised.

My Department publishes the Social Housing Construction Status Report (CSR). The CSR provides details of social housing developments that have been completed, are under construction or are progressing through the various stages of the design and tender processes. The most recent publication was for Quarter 2 2022 and is available at the following link: www.gov.ie/en/publication/5a259-social-housing-construction-projects-status-report-q2-2022/.

A version of the CSR file can also be downloaded for analysis at the link below: data.gov.ie/dataset/social-housing-construction-status-report-q2-2022?package_type=dataset.

Separately, Cork County Council has received approval for 3 separate Affordable Housing Fund applications that will deliver close to 180 Affordable Purchase homes in Clonakilty and Kinsale.

Increasing the supply of housing as set out in Housing for Allis the top priority for me and the Government and we have made a good start on our path towards this goal. I am confident that the delivery of Housing for Allwill create a sustainable housing system into the future and relieve the pent up pressure on the rental market.