Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party)
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646. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government to publish the average price paid per unit by approved housing bodies and local authorities when purchasing newly built homes; the way in which this compares to the average private market purchase price; and if value-for-money assessments are being undertaken before these acquisitions are approved. [47949/25]

James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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My Department assesses, approves and records local authority social housing delivery on a project basis. In order to provide an appropriate benchmark to use as a tool to inform the development and costing of scheme designs at capital appraisal stage, my Department periodically issues Basic Unit Costs (BUCs), for each local authority area.

To monitor tender cost trends and to inform BUC levels, my Department analyses the tender data for the construction cost element of new build schemes approved under the four stage approval processes for each unit type, where sufficient information is available to allow such costs to be extrapolated and where the information available is appropriate for comparison purposes.

The most recent Basic Unit Costs (BUCs) and Acquisition Cost Guidelines (ACGs) were issued in Q2 2025.

My Department also issues Acquisition Cost Guidelines (ACGs) , updated on an annual basis, for each local authority area.

The ACGs provide cost guidelines for the acquisition by housing authorities, of second-hand properties for the provision of social housing. These guidelines reference lower and upper cost ranges along with an average/benchmark cost, which is representative of the average range of current (at the time of issue) prices across the local authority area. The same ACGs are used by the Housing Agency for the acquisition of homes under the Cost Rental Tenant in Situ (CRTiS) scheme. The ACGs reflect anticipated benchmark levels at the time released, most recently Q2 of 2025. My Department continues to monitor tender price trends on an ongoing basis and all incoming funding applications are considered with such trends in mind.

The ACGs are not applied as absolute ceiling/limits, but instead act as a key benchmark for the development and costing of scheme designs at capital appraisal stage. Similarly, we will continue to consider acquisition proposals, of both schemes, where the cost of acquiring the property may exceed the guidelines provided, having regard to appropriate value for money considerations.

A copy of the BUCs and ACGs have been provided to all local authorities and can be made available to public representatives on request.