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WE ALL NEED and deserve a safe and secure place to live. No matter who we are; what we look like; or where we come from, this human need connects us all. There’s not one of us who isn’t affected in some way, be it ourselves, our children, friends or family.
Whatever set of statistics we want to use, what’s clear is that the country is awash with empty houses — more than all the people who need a home. On Census night in June 2022, 163,433 homes were empty. Geodirectory identified 86,708 places as empty. While according to electricity usage, the CSO estimates, that there are 90,000 dwellings unused — 4.3% of the number of dwellings in the country. Seven in every 10 homes is too big for its occupants in Ireland — reflecting one of the highest levels of ‘underused’ homes in Europe.
Huge numbers of people are priced out of the housing market. More people than ever are living week to week on couches, in hotel rooms, cars, tents, overcrowded houses, paying extortionate rents, stuck in a cycle of despair and upheaval. Despite all the promises and having more than enough money, this government has systematically failed to provide homes for us all.
With a week to go to local and European elections, a handful of politicians are relishing any chance to turn communities against each other. They have nothing in terms of policy to offer voters who are struggling and who need a secure home. Instead, they spread hate and misinformation regarding others, based on what people look like or where they come from, to distract voters, escalate tensions and gain attention.
These agitators, buoyed by the new ‘crackdown on immigration’ narrative from this government are fuelling a scarcity psyche, that makes easy headlines and is a fast-track path to stirring up divisions, tension, stress and anger.
Even the term “housing crisis” disguises the inhuman reality of what is happening and implies a sense of helplessness — a convenient way to avoid the reality that there are real solutions, real political choices, concrete actions and a path to ensuring that everyone has a secure home, no exceptions.
For Uplift’s 331,000 members — approximately 6.5% of the population in Ireland, creating liveable communities is our top priority. Being able to put down roots, have a secure roof over our heads and grow up feeling safe is fundamental to being able to live a full and thriving life.
Frustration is palpable as people struggle to find a secure home; keep their children in schools; stay in college; pay their bills; make life decisions, and pass empty houses every day, knowing that it could be their dream home.
Recently, members shared their experiences on a community call. We heard from a woman named Ellie who received an eviction notice while undergoing chemotherapy at the same time as she cared for her disabled husband. Now she lives in a temporary home, too much of a distance from the medical care she so badly needs.
Last week, the Housing Commission exposed just how far behind we are in meeting the basic housing needs of people in Ireland. The good news is that they clearly laid out a roadmap. The question is, will these newly elected councils and near-future government respond and implement what we know needs to be done?
Our own research at Uplift, compiled on our behalf by Paul Umfreville of TU Dublin, lays bare the barriers to tackling the turnaround of empty houses into homes. What is clear is that many of the policies needed to fix the problem exist — but are not being implemented.
Councils are not properly counting the number of empty houses, applicants trying to get grants can’t access them in a way that works for them, and business owners are facing an uphill battle to convert overshop spaces into dwellings.
These are solutions that are in front of councils and this government:
Repair and Leasing Scheme: Increase the funding that is made available for each project (from the current €80,000).
Accurate information: Local authorities should report quarterly on vacant house numbers, including the percentage relative to total housing stock. Every local authority should report on second homes subject to the Vacant Homes Tax annually.
Reporting vacancy: Make it easier to report potentially vacant or empty homes to the local Vacant Homes Officer.
Vacant property refurbishment grant: Increase this to €80,000, same as the Repair and Leasing Scheme.
Local Authority Home Loan: Allow people who are purchasing and renovating a derelict or vacant unit to access local authority loans.
Rent-a-Room: Extend the rent-a-room scheme for local authority tenants to include any possible tenant, not just students.
Living City Initiative: Extend the scheme for converting shops’ upper floors, and broaden the criteria. Extend The Repair and Leasing Scheme or the Vacant Property Refurbishment Programme to above shop accommodation refurbishment.
Empty homes are a political choice. Reams and reams of policies, schemes, grants and initiatives exist — but to work they need to help, not hinder people on the ground struggling to put a secure roof over their heads. This should be the measure of success for every politician seeking to represent local communities.
Leigh Brosnan is a campaigner with Uplift, Ireland’s largest people powered campaigning organisation. Uplift is politically independent of all political parties. She has previously worked as a parliamentary assistant to a Sinn Féin candidate but is no longer in that role.
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“WE ALL NEED and deserve a safe and secure place to live. No matter who we are; what we look like; or where we come from”. Why is Ireland responsible to house the world? It’s a ridiculous idea. We should be responsible to house Irish people.
@Miley Byrne: Well Holy God! The woke SJW zombies won’t like that statement, Miley.
(You’re 100% correct though)
@Finn Barr: Well done. Divide and conquer in action.
@Miley Byrne: we are not responsible for housing the world
@SYaxJ2Ts: Why are we responsible for housing you?
@Rafa C: you’re not
@Miley Byrne: You’re correct, it is a ridiculous idea!! Why then do you put it forward. You point out your own bias is all.
@SYaxJ2Ts: Then what’s your point? We are all human beings. Everyone deserves a safe place to live. If you’re ignorant then there’s no hope for you.
@Rafa C: my point is that we’re not responsible for housing the world as the original poster stated
@Rafa C: I think you may have misinterpreted my comment
@Miley Byrne: Too true look after our own and protect our culture from been desecrated
@Miley Byrne: I Housed Irish people for 23 years..Without any exaggeration at least 90% didn’t pay the cheapest rent in my town on time and and a awful lot of them didn’t pay the rent at all..They always had money for drink though. They would put ya in the mental.
@Miley Byrne: define an Irish person
@Miley Byrne: define Irish
Ah the old argument of people living in houses that are too big for them. So what! If people can afford a large house why not. More bedrooms usually means larger living space, kitchen etc. We have had a 5 bed house since before the kids were born for this reason. Now the 5 beds are occupied with kids or home offices. When the kids move out we aren’t suddenly going to only need a small kitchen & lounge. No one should be made to feel guilty for living in a house they’ve worked hard for
@SaraB:
Exactly, it’s pure undiluted Marxism, under the pretence of some kind of ‘compassion’, people should be very wary of these characters, promising ‘something for everyone in the audience’!
@Jonn: Only by taxing the rich will equality be achieved!! The current inequality doesn’t work for enough of us, so tax those for whom it really has, incomes over 200kpa, assets over 2 million on a scale sliding up. Make the rich need to sell their assets instead of sitting on them forever because they bring in passive income.
Driving Country people into Towns where they do not want To Live GIVE PEOPLE PLANNING IN THERE LOCAL AREA
@pat: so then they can complain about the lack of services for rural dwellers? And complain about rural isolation and vulnerability? We absolutely need to stop building one off rural houses. Build in towns, villages or increase serviceable clusters. But no more one offs!
@Soundy Sound: some of us wish to live in isolation. We don’t want to live in towns. We provide our own water waste disposal and given planning our own electricity. One off dwellings are not an issue. They are part of our culture and community for centuries. Building developments on flood plains and other important environmental impacts are the real issue not one off houses.
@Mic JHintl: so, do we keep building one off houses until there is no part of the countryside left without habitation because some people wish it?
@Soundy Sound: really?? You think that’s going to happen. We have a low density population in our country. Ireland is empty not full. Many people don’t want to live in the country. They just don’t like it for all types of reasons. One off houses are not an issue particularly if we utilize the 160k empty properties in the country and also the derelicts. It’s looking more like we will be approaching 10million population in the country quicker than we might think. You doubling the population and putting them in cities & towns is the answer. We are already been shown that local authorities in cities &towns cannot provide for this. Let those of us who understand living isolated be given the opportunity. The country is full of habitation and rural communities are not a threat to this.
“A house that’s too big for its occupants”??God forbid some widow or empty nester might have a box room lying idle, not when there’s Afghan and Somali males looking for a home,they’d fit right in,nice and cosy! Yet more Marxist nonsense chipping away at the concept of private property rights. Its not Irelands responsibility to house the world,regardless of what a lot of the political/NGO class seem to believe. An Irishmans home is his castle!
@Jonn: Spot on. She also recommends easier reporting of suspected vacant homes. Look at her profile, Sinn Fein background. They look at derelict houses, but don’t factor in that that many are structurally unsound & would cost more than a new build, or that they are owned privately & people can’t afford the rebuild cost even with grants, or that many of these houses are in a legal limbo with no wills made or disputes over wills, it’s a lot more complex, easier to trot out the line of thousands of vacant homes. If this author & her party got their way, we would have private homes repossessed by the State or homeowners made take in IPA’s into their homes, think that’s fanciful, these people believe that is an option. Another reason SF are on the slide.
@SV3tN8M4: more BS from you
@SYaxJ2Ts: The Fianna Fail party hack, the party that bankrupted the State & has us with record Homelessness figures, record Rental, Energy, Insurance & Grocery prices, a failed Health Service with the most expensive Hospital build in the world & bringing in thousands of people from all around the world & no where to put them. You haven’t the courage of your convictions to put your real name to your posts & continually defend the indefensible with this Govt. You are a sad little curtain twitcher, the kind that sold out this country many times. Looking forward to the day.
@SV3tN8M4: Hilarious. I call out your BS statement about SF and the author of this particular piece, and your response is to call me a FF party hack. You lack the basic intelligence to make a coherent and logical point
Not enough tradespeople and builders to do any of this, so it really doesn’t matter what grants or financial incentives are there. There’s not much point in increasing targets for new builds, renovations etc when construction companies can’t get the staff.
@Treasa Kerrigan: Yes, I’m sure there is.
But many years ago when I worked on sites a big incentive for trades people to stay around was a permanent job. Whether that be building for the council, big building contractors or even sub contractors.
Bogus self employment has a lot to answer for.
Now, so many people have no permanency, employment rights, social insurance, holiday pay, sick pay, etc. And the big one is trying to get a mortgage as a bogus self employed tradesperson. So why stick around. No job security here. They can just go off to Canada, Australia, etc. Saves the contractors/employers millions and less going in to the coffers of the state.
@Treasa Kerrigan:
Bullseye, and all our “Ireland for the Irish” amadans are trying to run out our only source of builders, immigrants.
We had no housing supply issue when we imported thousands of eastern Europeans to do the work.
@Fr. Fintan Stack: It’s almost as if when you take away the social safety net, people don’t have a social safety net! Who’da thunk?
Until we tax the rich enough to get at least some of what started as our money back, too many will have too little and too few will have way too much.
@P. J.: They were the right colour for the kind who give a rat’s arse about who does the work they won’t.
@Treasa Kerrigan: Then assign every tradesman an apprentice, learn on the job!
@Treasa Kerrigan: In 2007, Ireland had the largest number of construction workers in it’s history, and instead of having those people keep working to finish ghost estates, renovate existing social housing and build new social housing for the future, the government ridiculed the idea of doing so and did nothing except rearrange the furniture on the fore deck of the Titanic that was the Celtic Tiger and ignored the plight of the construction workers.
I don’t think it’s your intention, but giving the government the excuse of no construction workers as another reason to sit on their hands isn’t going to fix this national housing crisis.
The government in Ireland always has a tendency to keep repeating the very same mistakes with every new Dail session and expecting different outcomes..
@Dvsespaña:
While I would have loved to be able to continue building after the crash in 2008 we were deep in a bailout.
If any Irish government of the time had gone to the trioka for billions to build more houses they would have rolled around the floor laughing.
For whom…? I agree there’s to many empty houses around the country I’ve seen loads ..but most are also attached to farmlands where they can’t sell due to family land issues etc. Not as simple as there is a lot of family bitterness over wills been contested and homes are left for years uninhabited…
@Michele Milne: and that’s a massive issue that the government have chosen to ignore. The red tape around probate, people going into nursing homes, people passing with no relatives. It’s not a single issue but the power is in the governments hands and they choose not to do anything about it.
The way the current government is running the country, it seems like not only international protection applicants but also our own family members could be degraded by being made to live in tents in fields and beside canals throughout the country in the near future if FF/FG get their way. It feels like a divide-and-conquer and distraction strategy is at play by FG and FF, and it’s worrying how many of us seem to be falling for it. Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael are responsible for the housing and healthcare crisis, as well as every other current crisis, and people should not forget or forgive them when they cast their vote
@John Dennehy: it certainly does feel a divide and conquer situation
@John Dennehy: I was talking about this to someone the other day, who was complaining about foreigners living in tents and how they thought the solution was to send them home as all the alleged far right candidates are proposing.
The only reason that young Irish people aren’t also living in tent communities is family and friends putting a roof over their heads, foreigners living in tents are the canary in the coalmine for what is to come for young Irish people if this is allowed to continue.
Eventually, parents and friends will no longer be able to offer this support for various reasons. Friends will have familes of their own and parents that own the houses will die, unless its an only child, the houses will be sold, money divided and none of them will have enough to buy a home…
@John Dennehy: it most likely they will end up in tents. People who are in they’re 50s and 60s heading into retirement will be unable to pay the high rents and will be forced into the streets it’s inevitable. The old age pension and rent allowance won’t cover it, another well thought out long term plan from fg,ff and that breeze block cabbge head eamon never focusing on the importance of the seriousness of the crisis only themselves and waffle.
If there are empty houses here can we please try to house people WHO ARE ALREADY HERE??? Instead of bringing more in adding to the list and then asking why is it the housing list worsening? Spare a thought for those people here to be housed as a priority especially the younger generation of Irish which are being very wrongly forced abroad.
@Paddy C: we aren’t bringing anyone in
@SYaxJ2Ts: sorry you’re right they’re coming in and we’re accommodating. Pity same treatment does not apply to Irish abroad they must work and better have passports and reason of travel in order immediately upon arrival especially in Australia or USA or back you go and also no criminal records and proof of it or deportation. Such ridiculous laws they have I suppose one would wonder why they thought them up what were or are they trying to prevent?such fools
@Paddy C: you seem to expect asylum seekers to Ireland to be processed in the same way as economic migrants to the US
@Paddy C: We’re not bringing anyone in, they make their own way are entitled to protection at least until their application is dealt with.
This conspiracy theory that somehow white Irish are being replaced deliberately is the most incredible nonsense and anyone putting it forward is obviously ignorant of the facts. Some people need to grow up!
@Chutes: why doesn’t USA or Australia let people in and look after them until there processed. They won’t, you have to have you’re passport,visa, 5000 euro in you’re account and a job lined up. This is not about not helping refugees this is also about sorting helping the refugees ALREADY HERE and controlling thee influx not ignoring letting it worsen. You say they’re entitled to protection, why won’t USA and Australia do it they won’t. You must obey they’re laws and they’re immigration application system that’s not being unfair its common sense.
@SYaxJ2Ts: I’d expect a bit of common sense now that the situation is out of control. If people are yong in tents on streets and can’t be housed how many tents and streets have to be occupied before someone says its wrong and unfair we can either help them or leave them in the streets which is what we’re doing. They need to be told the truth we can’t house what’s here regardless of nationality full stop hkw can more be housed its not racism,badness or anything else its clear as day it can’t be done will take 15 years or more to achieve and won’t with continuing influx.
@Chutes:
What on earth could possibly be fuelling the laughable ‘conspiracy theory’ that the native Irish are enroute to being a minority in their own country? Well,apart from a collapsing birth rate,largely the result of deliberate government policies for decades,that now way below replacement level, and statistics showing that something like a quarter of the population is now non-native,and rising..a 10 minute walk around Dublin,Cork,Galway or Limerick should provide all the evidence you need that the native Irish are in free fall,demographically! Can something be both true and a conspiracy theory at the same time? Just asking!
@Jonn: an increase in the proportion of non Irish resident here does not equate to replacement. And those falling birth rates that you refer to are due to increased levels of women in the workforce and the availability of contraception – both socially desirable, wouldn’t you agree? Population replacement is a BS conspiracy theory
@SYaxJ2Ts:
You’re nearly there,Kevin,just need to go the extra few steps. So if you have declining birth rates well below replacement level on one side of the scale along with thousands of Irish leaving because they can’t find a home,and on the other side you have a steady stream of inward migration, for whatever reason..multiply that over years and decades and eventually you get…….
@Jonn: spot on my next door neighbour has 2 sons and 2 daughters all aged between 20-35 all still stuck living at home working full time can’t afford a home can’t afford to have a family. The Irish birth rate itself is dropping there is no arguing that if they want a home and family have to go abroad its absolutely disgraceful and would make you ashamed its so wrong
@Paddy C: I can promise you this, it will worsen. Climate change and growing geopolitical instability assures nothing else. Maybe it’s just me but I would never turn away from a cry for help!! You think you deserve this land by accident of birth? That’s ridiculous. Why did you go with whataboutery for your answer??
@Jonn: You clearly do not understand the mathematics of population shifts. And when you refer to native Irish, what does this mean? What is the definition?
@Chutes: a cry for help what about the Irish who are homeless here already YEARS ON THE WAITING LIST? What about the foreign nationals here already years on the waiting list they’re crying for help no ones listening if more enter the country and cry will anyone listen and house them if whats here already can be?wake up man
The opening line of this woeful piece of journalism is wrong.
Not everyone deserves a place to live.
Able bodied people should be working for their place to live.
Not just plopping out kids for more free welfare.
@Paul: The lack of Empathy, social awareness and humanity in this comment is shocking. There are ”able bodied” people out there working full time and still can’t afford a home.
”Not everyone deserves a place to live
Get your head checked
Some good points, however, I would disagree with local authority tenants being able to avail of the rent a room scheme. If there is spare capacity in a local authority property the tenant should have to downsize, leaving the larger unit for families etc. focus on building smaller units should be the priority to allow this to happen.
@The next small thing:
A good point, but I will be fair to the planners on that one, there is a lot of push on 2 beds now rather than the traditional 3 bed semi, especially on infill sites.
One near me recently started, 72 units, 14 of them 3 beds same are 1 beds and 44 are 2 bed.
That site originally was planned for about 40 3beds
So if the two or three million illegals in the UK move to Ireland, we should house them?
Which they will do when they see their mates getting houses. I think you have not thought this through.
@Dan Murphy: so you disagree with derelict houses being made available for people? And thus keeping many Irish homeless?
A message for people who worked all they’re lives in they’re 50s and 60s heading towards retirement paying heavy rent. You’re government doesn’t care about you’re futures as you will be unable to pay these rising rents and will like many possibly end up in the streets. What a disgrace when it’s quite more than obvious many years back this was coming about. But I suppose they don’t matter we have an obligation to house those who enter the country without permission, without passports,without proof of fleeing any war torn country, without proof of no criminal records that’s our moral obligation now.
All makes sense till your loved ones leave the planet suddenly with probate to be done in three countries to navigate and a bill pending of €22,000 for probate, another €16,000 owed in property tax etc.
It’s not all straight forward that’s my point.
@Vinny Hughes: The only real way to be wealthy now is to have rich parents. They have it all sown up!
Awesome. Substantial policies are badly needed, rather than dividing communities, spreading hate and evading real solutions by blaming other underclass such as immigrants.
@David Walsh: I agree with that—enough of the cesspit politics from all political parties.
@David Walsh: Dividing communities, if you think that commandeering private homes is the answer, your going to be shocked at what comes next. Try it & you will see a real civil war unfold. Every label now is Far Right this, Far Right that, the Far Left are dictating policies in Ireland, Sinn Fein coming out today saying their slide is down to the Far Right, ffs. If you think that we should house some guy hopping around Europe from Africa & the Middle East, who arrives here, destroys his passport on entry, should be housed by the Irish State, there will be a tsunami of people here in a very short time. No country in the world would cope or be able to give everyone a house, it’s so simplistic to say we must house everybody.
Absolutely, now that the government has recognized Palestine and has put all it’s focus on it – we should be readying houses for the next wave of arrivals from there. There is no way our brothers from Gaza should sleep in tents
@Kush OMeara: NO THANKS!!! If the Irish goverment or Sharia Fein wants to help out the Hamasstinian’s …they can pay for refuge camps in the nearest safe country and send out Irish NGO’s to run them!
@Kush OMeara: increase the property tax on those who own there own homes after working hard for them all they’re lives. They can contribute more after receiving no allowances from government to pay it,all off thyre own backs but sure hit them with nowhere property Tax and we’ll use that wouldn’t be surprised with the incompetence of what’s in power to try bring it about.
Yes but not for refugees
@Dominic Leleu: there’s plenty of opportunities for Irish educated qualified people abroad they can head off why should they even be given a thought.
All property/land should be taxed to its potential, encouraging people to put it to use or sell it to some one who can. We can’t afford waste in this area.
@brian o’leary: Lol! Spoken like someone that doesn’t own FA!
If you own something it’s yours by definition. Why should anyone else have a say in what you do or don’t do with it?
Why not expand this to everything else if you think it’s such good idea?
Your neighbours could then just arrive and root through your house for things that they decide that you aren’t actively using and take them away for themselves, I mean, we can afford waste in that area…
@brian o’leary: A stupid statement, obviously by somebody who was handed a house & never had to work to pay for a house. You must be either blind or plain thick if you don’t see all the taxes, direct & indirect that the Irish State has on building of housing, ownership of housing & even when you die. Your statement is an incidenary device for those who have spent their lives working hard to buy & pay for their own homes, if you think people are going to lie down for proposals like yours, your going to be shocked at they level that people will fight back.
@Dvsespaña: actually, I own a number of properties, including a derelict cottage and a few acres of land which the state hasnt charged me a cent of tax on in the last 25 years…..and counting.
@SV3tN8M4: we already have the LPT John although I must have missed the riots. Some empty/derelict properties are aloud to escape the net?
@brian o’leary: You are obviously telling porkies & making up things, your posts show that yo be the case, go away & wind up someone else.
@brian o’leary: That’s one of the most sensible comments on here! Now if you include or preferably redirect subsidies into more environmentally friendly form of considered development, then I think you’re on to something ngl!
It’s just toooo expensive to fix a property absurd the prices. Can’t blame owners.
This has always been a good idea and is what we did some 5 years ago. Bought a derelict bungalow site in the hills about 45 mins from the city, apparently Irish people think thats too far, but had lived in London for the years before, so an hour commute is a way of life (think that has changed in the last 5 years tho) Renovation and build was hard, the skilled labours are getting top dollar with big contracts and don’t really want your one off build work, so we went through 5 or 6 companies until we fitted with the schedule of a local builder who is excellent (always go local and pay in cash). It’s been a mad process so far, understanding how the planning system, contracts, architects, all operate is mind bending for the most part the entire industry works around the blame game, most positioning themselves so they can say ‘not my fault’. Worked for us in the end, probs cost the same as a semi D in an estate somewhere, but instead it’s rolling hills, country walks, and quietness.
Just turn the PTPB into an Airbnb look alike. They then do the check in, take the rent, take a cut and regardless, pay the landlord monthly. All legals in house. What terrifies the often elderly owner, is non payment of rent, resulting in lengthy legals, like in the feeds just now, €30K, of which not one brass cent will ever be paid. If the tenant had it, they would have been paying the rent in the first place. All problems compounded by the false “good bye references”.
We are not responsible for creating migrants. The countries that make and sell weapons and that engage in wars are the guilty ones. Now that the Germans, British and of course the USA are pushing for more and bigger wars, sucker countries like Ireland can expect more abd nire mugrants.
@Fearg:
Everyone doesn’t ‘deserve’ a house. The sick and disabled should have their needs looked after without question, but the rest need to work for it
We need goals, whether born here or not. It’s just at the moment, homeownership is an unrealistic goal for so many ppl born here. Cheaper building materials are surely out there?
Or if we had a conscription system where all able bodied ppl required by law to work x hours on building sites. So many in the gym lifting weights who cud be on a site lifting blocks. Not saying block-laying is easy or all that’s involved in building, but surely there’s a genius out there who could organise a scheme to get Ireland built.
I see builders across from my gym and often think they’re doing something productive while I’m heading inside to run like a hamster!
@Em: Plenty of able bodied men coming in, isn’t that the real solution, train those willing men up? You can’t conscript unless war is thought to be coming! Coercion is never the answer!
The R.T.B. isn’t dissuasive to landlords. A landlord can kick you out, pocket the €600 profit he adds to the rent after evicting you and easily afford to cope with the paltry sanctions that might be imposed after a hearing. In other words, it’s so profitable to break the law that it’s commonplace. The R.T.B. is not a stick it’s a twig to beat them with.
@Chutes:
You are dead right, that must be the reason so many landlords left.
@P. J.: Where I imagine they sold when the price was right for them, as do most people when they can. The poor mouth landlord is a load of bs that I won’t accept.
I moved into my village 11 years ago. There’s a house across from the school that has never been occupied as long as im there….its privately owned but a crying shame considering all the homeless…
@Clare Power: bring in large taxes for those who own second homes
@M To The B: no thanks…I have more than one house and they’re occupied…
Some home’s are in Legal Limbo…it will be impossible to do them all.
No one can solve the housing crisis , even Sinn Fein, unless the Referendum on Housing is passed
… to have the same balance between Property Rights and Societal rights to affordable homes as in France, Holland, Sweden, Germany and most other countries.
Abandoned, derelict houses can be acquired by the local council in these countries.
VAT: You can NOT have VAT tax on homes in these countries, unlike Ireland … as an example.
First proposed in 1974.
Sign the Petition:
https://www.change.org/p/referendum-on-housing
Sinn Fein is the new Irish Soviet Party!
Where were all these fine folks prior to the real beginning of inward migration when we had plenty of homeless and sick? Not a peep out of them back then.Now all of a sudden they give a fk? I call bllsht!!!
Absolute nonsense
I tried to be elected and failed ..now I’ll stick my face on here on the first issue I can find to further my public profile….sickening and an example of all that’s wrong in Ireland
have your say