The lack of housing in Tipperary has been described as being at “all time crisis” level, according to Councillor Mary Hanna Hourigan.
Cllr Hourigan chairs the Strategic Policy Housing committee in County Tipperary and says she has never seen the situation worse as she supports six people seeking emergency accommodation – some on “notice to quit” from their landlord.
There are 840 people on the Tipperary/Cahir/Cashel Municipal District housing list, with only 55 vacant properties and only 20 of these are available to rent as the others are in need of repairs.
Tipperary County Council has a target to build 230 new houses this year – this target may be exceeded, however it is unlikely to make a dent in the list with 3,521 on the approved housing list across the county.
Cllr Hourigan cited slow turnaround on vacant houses as one issue that might be addressed but says there are shortages of skilled labour to deliver repairs and refurbishment in vacant houses.
Many people currently find themselves in stuck in accommodation that does not meet their current needs due to the crisis.
Ms Hourigan suggests at a national policy level that developers may need to be required to include a larger portion of social housing in all developments to address the shortage.
She also called on the council to not sell any land zoned for residential development and for Approved Housing Bodies to be prevented from selling any of their stock.
