Social housing waiting list falls in Laois but big shortage of Portlaoise one beds

After years of hovering at around 1,700 names, the waiting list to get a social home from Laois County Council is finally dropping.

A record number of almost 500 individuals and families were given low cost rental social homes in 2023 in the county.

However hundreds of more people joined the list, while the biggest demand is for small Portlaoise homes that are not being built by developers because there is not enough profit in them.

Laois County Council has produced a special report two years into their Housing for All four year programme, showing they are smashing the target set by Government of 534 new homes by 2026, having reached 515 just two years after it begun.

In 2023, 286 keys were handed out for brand new social homes. Another 204 were given out as reletted, purchased and leased homes, to total 490 homes.

In 2022, they had delivered 326 social homes in similar ways.

The waiting list for homes had been rising steadily from 1,198 in 2016 in Laois as the housing shortage worsened, peaking at 1,805 names in 2022.

It has now dropped by 251 names to 1,554.

The council CEO John Mulholland explains why it kept rising despite the delivery of an extra 1,015 new social homes over the same six year period.

“I would contend that were it not for the increased threshold in income that came in a couple of years ago, that figure might well be down by about 750.

“The increased income threshold has added to the housing list by about 54%,” he said.

“The positive news is that there is a decrease of 251 names on our list,” Mr Mulholland said at the January council meeting.

“The big issue that we have is in relation to one and two bed units.

“I don't really see any economical or financial prospect of that being sorted fairly soon, such is the cost of providing one or two beds.

“If you look at three or four beds I think the council has done a lot of work on that, and that's a very manageable position.

“But it's the one and two bed that are problematic and they have the effect of swelling the housing waiting list. You can see also by area of choice that Portlaoise is way ahead in terms of 765,” the CEO said.

“Portarlington, Mountmellick and Abbeyleix follow up in demand,” he added.

Those numbers are much smaller, at 175, 174 and 130 for the three towns.

The council say that 53% of the housing applicants are aged 31 to 50 years old.

The most common stated need for social housing is that the person is renting but “requires rent supplement” to do so.

There are 698 people requesting a one bed home, and another 525 requesting a home with two bedrooms. Just 267 of them request a three bedroom home, and just 61 ask for a four bedroom home.

67% of the applicants are Irish. 22% are from Europe, 1% are from the UK, and 11% are from outside the EU.

54% of the applicants are earning between €35,000 to €40,000. 4% are earning more, between €40,000 and €42,000.

42% are earning €35,000 or less.

60% of the main applicants are on social welfare, and 31% are employed. 4% are retired, and 6% are in the 'other' category, such as students or homemakers.

Laois Cathaoirleach Cllr Paschal McEvoy praised the “phenomenal” number of 490 homes given out in 2023.

The council lists another 207 homes to be built in 2024.