Numerous challenges impacting efforts to alleviate housing waiting list in Kilkenny

Despite plans to complete 157 social housing units in Kilkenny by the end the year, the housing crisis continues to put pressure on housing officials to alleviate the local housing waiting list.

Some ongoing challenges in the sector were discussed in detail during this month’s meeting of Kilkenny County Council, where the 2021/2022 Housing Capital Update was presented.

Challenges highlighted during the presentation included rising construction costs, a lesser availability of contractors and the rising complexity of site appraisals for potential purchases.

There is currently a gross housing need of 1,633 applications in Kilkenny including transfer requests. 712 of these applicants currently have no current housing solution.

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Despite this, there was a 22.5% refusal rate to housing offers in 2021.

During the presentation, the fact that one property had been refused six times in succession by six different applicants was highlighted to show the administrative challenges faced by the housing team.

In a bid to address this, applicants are being urged to accept offers of accommodation when made.

If an applicant opts to reject a property twice in one year, they face being removed from the housing list for the next year.

For Cllr Eugene McGuinness, another huge issue with new housing coming on-stream in Kilkenny is rising maintenance costs.

“In recent years, maintenance workers have told me that they have been put to the pin of their collars,” he said.

“That issue still hasn’t been addressed with even more houses on the way now. As one of four designated regional craft cities in Europe why aren’t we employing more tradesmen, carpenters, painters and electricians?”

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Housing officials noted the councillor’s comments and confirmed that ongoing maintenance costs are also a challenge.

Another issue raised during the presentation was the apparent reluctance of many housing applicants to accept modern apartments and duplex-style properties, instead hoping to be offered more traditional housing.

With much of the social housing under construction now being high-density in nature and incorporating these newer building styles, there is concern this may cause more allocation issues.

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