Leitrim gets zero money from €2.7 billion house building fund
Leitrim is one of three counties that have never received funding from Home Building Finance Ireland (HBFI), a state agency set up to help housebuilders who can't get loans from banks.
HBFI provided a record €2.7 billion in funding for new homes last year and has backed the construction of over 13,000 homes since its founding in 2018. However, none of these homes have been built in Leitrim, Roscommon, or Longford.
Meanwhile, Leitrim once again recorded the lowest number of houses under construction in the country, with only 101 commencements in 2024.
The scheme “needs to be looked at again,” says Padraig Fallon, a Leitrim councillor who is aware of the issues developers in Leitrim face when considering loans from HBFI.
“When the entry fee and the exit fee is taken into account, along with the interest rate applied, these builders and accountants told me that it's just not financially viable.”
However, he says something needs to be done to get houses built in Leitrim, as the housing crisis in the county is stark.
“Multiple times a day I get calls about housing. Every day of the week, Saturday and Sunday the same as Monday.”
He says he is constantly fielding calls from families and young people in need of housing in the county and feels that more needs to be done on government and local government level to get more houses built.
“There have been numerous motions from Leitrim County Council around that issue. Nothing has happened. I'm sure those motions have gone in from every local authority in the state. Nothing has happened. But if we're serious—if we're serious about tackling the housing crisis, and it is a crisis—we need to see initiatives, and we need to see them fast.”
“The whole housing policy needs a radical reset and reform here and now. That is something that I will be bringing up at the next full council meeting—that's my intention. Hopefully, there's an opportunity now with a new minister to get things assessed.”
“There are greater numbers in need of social housing now than there ever were, and that is going to, in my view, it's certainly going to be the situation for the next decade at least.”
The Sinn Féin councillor also called for greater transparency from the government regarding the number of houses being built.
“I think it's a disgrace and an outrage because everybody needs to work together to sort this issue and cut out the bullshit and the spin around what is being done because anybody on the ground will know and will tell you that this is not being done.”