Kildare tenants face rent payment delays
Kildare County Council has acknowledged that it has a backlog of applications for housing assistance payments.
HAP is a support for people who have a housing need and is managed by KCC, which pays landlords directly with tenants making a contribution based on their ability to do so.
A call for the council to address the backlog in HAP processing and to commit to prioritising homeless HAP applications - by immediately recommencing the homeless HAP processing system was made by Cllr Nuala Killeen.
She said this would “assist in alleviating part of the homelessness crisis in Kildare” adding that it is currently taking 12 weeks to process HAP applications.
She told a Kildare County Council meeting that this is the only system that is in place “as a mechanism to provide any kind of homelessness prevention in County Kildare.
She added that “homelessness is at levels never seen before.”
KCC official Annete Aspell said there is a backlog of applications and “currently we have 56 valid applications on hand, the majority of which “are less than eight weeks old.”
The meeting further heard the HAP process is being reviewed and staff are completing two weeks overtime “in order to clear the backlog.”
Homeless applications will continue to be prioritised. HAP landlords are paid monthly, and this can impact payment timelines.
According to Ms Aspell delays are also caused by incomplete applications and failure by landlords to submit the landlord section of the application.
She also reported that KCC engaged in an acquisition programme in 2022 which prioritised tenancies at risk of homelessness by purchasing properties where a valid notice to quit was issued. She added that the allocation scheme for social housing provides “priority status to households at risk of or experiencing homelessness”