Calls for clarity over minister's commitment on tenant-in-situ scheme in Cork city

It would cost in the region of €2.5m for 49 Cork city households awaiting news on the tenant-in-situ (TIS) scheme to spend a year in emergency accommodation, as public representatives have called for clarity on a commitment from the housing minister to purchase properties.

At a city council meeting on Monday, the council’s director of housing Alison O’Rourke informed councillors that there are currently 25 properties, housing 44 adults and 26 children, at sale agreed stages under the TIS scheme, as well as 24 further applications “under various stages of review”.

Housing minister James Browne said in the Dáil on Thursday that he had met with Cork City Council’s executive and that it was “perfectly normal” that they “engaged with various people that they thought needed tenant-in-situ in advance of the allocation this year”.

He added: “Those allocations will be purchased this year for those people.”

A spokesperson for the housing department told The Echo it is “working closely” with the council to explore how to ensure TIS acquisitions remain an option.

However, the spokesperson did not clarify if the commitment to purchase properties included the 24 under review or just the 25 at sale agreed stage.

Cork City Council told The Echo it “continues to engage” with the department, but also did not clarify which properties, if any, would be purchased.

Meanwhile, Jason Cashman, who previously told The Echo his private rental property was at sale agreed stage before he heard that funding was an issue, said: “We have had no official communication or updates from Government or city council on this at all.

“We are getting phone calls every few days from the auctioneers to see if there is any update, putting pressure on us, and I can’t give them an answer.”

It comes as Labour councillors were told on Monday by Ms O’Rourke that there would be a significant cost if those applicants were to enter emergency accommodation for a period of 12 months.

She explained that costs would vary depending on family size, location, and type of accommodation, but: “Of the live applications, six are single households which would have [an] estimated max cost of €240k per annum.

“The remaining are 18 households with an average of 2+2 which as a ed temporary accommodation (STA) costs roughly €700K and in a private emergency accommodation (PEA) [costs] €1m.

“In total for a 12-month period that number of households could have a maximum cost up €1.24m.”

If the sales of the 25 sale-agreed properties do not proceed, this figure could double.

Labour councillor Ciara O’Connor said the data shows that purchasing the homes is the more cost-effective option in the long run.

Her party colleague Peter Horgan added that the minister’s commitment was welcome but: “We need to see the communication issued to the tenants and the landlords that the sale will happen as I’m aware of landlords beginning to pull away from the process.

“We also need to ensure that the 2025 to date applications are funded and processed quickly.”

Sinn Féin TD Thomas Gould, to whom the Dáil commitment was given, said: “Seventy people, including 26 children, in Cork city are now relying on him to follow through on this.”