Thomas Gould (Cork North-Central, Sinn Fein)
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556. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the total number of applications for the croí cónaithe scheme, by local authority area; the total number that have been successful; the number that have passed the maximum delivery time; and the number that have been fully drawn down. [38839/25]

James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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Pathway 4 of Housing for All sets out a blueprint to address vacancy and make efficient use of our existing housing stock.

The Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant, introduced in July 2022 under the Croí Cónaithe, provides a grant of up to €50,000 for the refurbishment of vacant properties for occupation as a principal private residence and for properties which will be made available for rent. A top-up grant of up to €20,000 is available where the property is confirmed to be derelict, bringing the total grant available for a derelict property up to a maximum of €70,000. In order to qualify for the grant, the property must be vacant for 2 years or more at the time of application.

In order to support the timely delivery of properties back into use, from May 2023, once a Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant application receives approval, applicants must complete works applied for within a period of 13 months. In exceptional circumstances, where an applicant is experiencing particular issues and cannot complete the works applied for under the grant within the 13 month period, the local authority may grant an extension of the approval period at their discretion. My Department issued a circular to all local authorities in October 2023 in this regard. My Department does not hold data on the number of grant applications where an extension has been granted, individual local authority's may have this information.

My Department publishes data on applications for the Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant on its website on a quarterly basis, which includes the number of applications, approvals and the total number and value of grants paid per local authority. The Q1 2025 grant statistics were published on 28th April 2025. This data can be accessed at the following link: