New ‘lottery’ system to distribute cost-rental homes

Darragh O’Brien, the Minister for Housing, has signed new regulations which require that an “independently-verifiable lottery” should be used to select households for new cost-rental homes when there is excess demand

Darragh O'Brien, Minister for Housing, and Fiona Cormican of Clúid at the launch of the state’s first cost rental homes at Taylor Hill, Balbriggan, Co Dublin

A new housing “lottery” system is going to be used to determine which households get to live in 18,000 planned cost-rental homes with rents 25 per cent below market rates.

Demand for the state’s first cost-rental developments has already far outstripped supply, with more than 1,000 people applying for 25 homes in an estate in Dublin last year and another 1,000 applying for 50 homes in an estate in Kildare.

Rents in Dublin are more ...