Danny Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent)
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474. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the number of vacant residential properties in each county; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35736/25]

Danny Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent)
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476. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the number of vacant residential properties in County Kerry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35739/25]

James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 474 and 476 together.

Addressing vacancy and making efficient use of existing housing stock is a key priority for Government, as set out in Pathway 4 of Housing for All.

The Vacant Homes Action Plan, published in January 2023, built on Pathway 4 and set out the various actions that were being pursued to return vacant properties back into use as homes. The Action Plan Progress Report was published in April 2024 and is available here on: www.gov.ie/en/department-of-housing-local-government-and-heritage/publications/vacant-homes-action-plan-2023-2026/

Data in relation to vacant properties is available from a number of sources such as the CSO Census and GeoDirectory publications. In the latest GeoDirectory Residential Buildings Report for Q4 2024, the vacant rate in Kerry was 7.1%, while the average vacancy rate across Ireland had dropped to 3.8%, the lowest rate recorded since 2013.

My Department has also supported local authorities to collate data on vacant and derelict properties in their administrative areas. Almost all local authorities now have a database of vacant properties which they can update on an ongoing basis. The database is not intended to be a comprehensive count of every vacant and derelict property in their administrative area. It is used by the local authority to engage with property owners and work with them to bring those properties back into use.

While varying levels and rates of vacancy are indicated in the different data sources, the overall trend is downwards and vacancy levels are reducing.