Green Party TD for Waterford Welcomes New Fund to Refurbish Vacant properties, Increase Home Ownership and Revitalise Communities
Green Party TD for Waterford, Marc Ó Cathasaigh today welcomed a new fund to refurbish vacant properties, increase home ownership and revitalise communities. Croí Cónaithe, the €50million fund which was launched today will support people bringing vacant and underused buildings in our towns and villages back into residential use. Tackling vacancy and combatting dereliction are key elements of the Our Rural Future and Town Centre First policies which aim to revitalise our town centres and the announcement of today’s fund builds on these ambitions.
Under the new scheme, a grant of up to €30,000 will be available for the refurbishment of vacant properties for occupation as a principal private residence, including the conversion of a property which has not been used as a home before now. Where a property is derelict, a maximum top-up grant amount of up to €20,000 will be available, bringing the total grant available for a derelict property up to a maximum of €50,000. This can also be combined with the SEAI Better Energy Home Scheme that covers works of up to €26,750.
Speaking after the announcement, Deputy Ó Cathasaigh said:
“The launch of Croí Cónaithe is another huge step forward for our towns and villages which for too many years have been neglected. Communities have been hollowed out, shops have closed and services have been diminished as the focus was taken off our smaller towns and villages but this new fund will help address that. We all know of many derelict buildings throughout the county but this fund will help people turn these buildings around and give them a new lease of life. They will be turned into homes for families and individuals and will help to revitalise some of our towns and villages which have been hollowed out over the past decades.”
“I’m particularly pleased to see that the fund can be used for buildings which have not previously been residential and it can also be combined with SEAI energy grants to make this more viable. We are in the middle of a housing crisis and this will help us make efficient use of existing housing stock and existing buildings which can be repurposed to create accommodation. We are also in the middle of a climate emergency and repurposing older buildings and bringing them back to life is a sensible and sustainable approach to creating more housing in Ireland. The upcoming Vacant Property Tax is designed to encourage the release of more derelict properties so that they can be turned into housing for this and future generations. Croí Cónaithe is open to people who wish to set up home and become part of a community and I believe that we will see the positive impact of this on Waterford communities over the coming years.”
The Croí Cónaithe Fund will be delivered through local authorities who will provide a grant to support the refurbishment of vacant properties, with priority given to applications in areas where the level of vacancy or dereliction is high.
A grant of up to €30,000 will be available for the refurbishment of vacant properties for occupation as a principal private residence, including the conversion of a property which has not been used as a home before now.
Where a property is derelict, a maximum top-up grant amount of up to €20,000 will be available, bringing the total grant available for a derelict property up to a maximum of €50,000. This can also be combined with the SEAI Better Energy Home Scheme that covers works of up to €26,750.
More information is available here: gov.ie – Croí Cónaithe (Towns) Fund Scheme (www.gov.ie)
