COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

south dublin county council crest

MEETING OF SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

Monday, September 13, 2010

QUESTION NO. 26

QUESTION: Councillor E. Tuffy

To ask the Manager for an updated report on the number of Council housing units which have been allocated to applicants to date in 2010, and if  he can make a statement on the implementation of the Council's new Housing Leasing Initiative and how many units are expected to be allocated to applicants in 2010?

REPLY:

A total of 223 Council dwellings have been allocated for 2010 to date of these 174 were to applicants on the Council's Housing List and 49 to applicants on the Transfer List.

The roll out and active promotion in South Dublin of the Social Housing Leasing Initiative in accordance with Department of the Environment Heritage & Local Government circulars N3/07 and SHIP 2010.07 commenced in June 2010 following the adoption of the Croke Park Agreement

An Information Booklet (pdf document) outlining the opportunity   for property owners for making properties available to a local authority under the initiative was published an advertised by the Housing & Sustainable Communities Agency. A follow up national newspaper advertisement was carried out in August 2010. The scheme is also outlined  on the Council’s website together with an outline FAQ. for landlords who may be interested in the scheme.

To date the Council has received expressions of interest from property owners across a range of property types throughout the county for in excess of 100 properties which are at various stages of assessment and inspection for suitability for inclusion in the scheme.

In an effort to drive the leasing initiative in South Dublin, Department of the Environment Heritage & Local Government approval was received to operate the ASH (Applicant Sourced Homes) programme on a pilot basis. This represents an exciting new opportunity for housing applicants to source their own home which, subject to suitability of the property and agreement with the property owner, will be leased by the Council. The ASH programme has just commenced and is being rolled out to persons on the housing list on an incremental basis.

The Social Housing Leasing Initiative is in the early stages of development and implementation. The members will be kept informed of progress.