The Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Darragh O’Brien, has published an update on the planning measures he introduced a year ago to increase homeownership and restrict the practice of bulk purchasing by institutional investors. It demonstrates that almost 16,000 residential units have been ring-fenced for individual buyers and restricted from bulk buying or multiple sales to a single purchaser.
In May 2021, Ministerial Guidelines for Planning Authorities (“Regulation of Commercial Institutional Investment in Housing”) were issued to planning authorities to prevent multiple housing and duplex units from being sold to a single buyer.
As of 18 May 2022, An Bord Pleanála advised that it had applied the planning condition prohibiting multiple sales to a total of 7,988 residential units across 23 Strategic Housing Development (SHD) planning permissions. Furthermore, of the 31 local authorities, 23 confirmed that they have permitted 7,895 residential units with a condition attached to prohibit multiple sales.
Commenting on the data, O’Brien said: “The government is committed to supporting homeownership. This data demonstrates that we are making the right interventions and delivering for those who wish to get on the property ladder. Through our plan, Housing for All, we are taking every possible measure to increase supply and provider greater access to homeownership for those who want it.”