Everyone says they want the problem solved but what is the first thing that happens when a planning application for a large social housing development becomes known in a town? Of the 17,995 houses built in 2018, a quarter were one-off houses in the countryside, many aided by generous taxpayer grants. Less than a quarter were for social housing, while half were for private buyers. There are no fewer than 520 Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs) controlling a stock of 30,000 properties, averaging just 57 houses each. You don't do that by depressing the market through building thousands of houses.

Source: Irish Independent December 18, 2019 02:48 UTC