The Housing Agency is delighted to launch its Housing Education Bursary Scheme for the 2025/2026 academic year.

Recent years have seen significant developments in the areas of housing delivery and policy. Housing professionals will play a key role in shaping future developments in the sector. The Housing Agency is committed to supporting the education, training, and development of housing practitioners, as well as those interested in developing a career in housing. The Housing Education Bursary Scheme will empower housing professionals to build resilient and sustainable communities in Ireland.

The Bursary Scheme supports students and housing professionals seeking to enrol in housing studies courses offered by the Institute of Public Administration (IPA) and the Irish Council for Social Housing (ICSH) / Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH), starting between September 2025 and January 2026. These included:

How to apply

The bursary awards are intended to support those who would otherwise be unable to secure funding for the full course fees from their organisation or other sources. 

Applicants can apply by downloading and completing the bursary application form and returning it as a PDF to training@housingagency.ie by the closing date/s outlined above.

On Tuesday 17th June, The Housing Agency was asked to attend the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing along with colleagues from the LDA to discuss challenges in delivering housing. 

The Housing Agency's CEO, Martin Whelan was joined by

• Gwen Perry , Head of Affordable Housing
• Jim Baneham, Director of Delivery and Innovation
• Pat Fitzpatrick, acting Director of Services and Inclusion
• David Silke , Director of Insights and Operations 

Read the opening statement here - JOC Opening Statement

The full video recording of the committee session can be found on the Oireachtas website here - Video

Multi-unit developments (MUDs) are estates where an owners’ management company, or OMC for short, is responsible for maintaining shared facilities such as gardens, amenity spaces, halls, corridors, and parking. These managed estates are often apartment buildings or duplexes. They can also be townhouses or stand-alone houses that share common facilities. The quality and the sustainability of the built environment enjoyed by these communities rely on well-run OMCs.

With the increasing number of apartments across the country, The Housing Agency is holding evening information meetings for stakeholders, including residents, owners, and directors of OMCs.

The meetings will cover:

• Challenges faced by OMCs & managed estates
• Roles and responsibilities
• Resources available
   

Events will be held at:

Landmark Hotel, Carrick on Shannon- Wednesday, 10 September 2025

Clayton Hotel, Galway - Wednesday, 17 September 2025

Louis Fitzgerald Hotel, Newland’s Cross, Dublin 22 - Wednesday, 24 September 2025

Crowne Plaza Hotel, Santry, Dublin 9 - Wednesday, 1 October 2025

Castletroy Park Hotel, Limerick  - Wednesday, 15 October 2025

Clayton Silver Springs Hotel, Cork - Wednesday, 22 October 2025

How to attend – registration required

Attendance places, while free of charge, are limited. 

Registration is required.

Please register by clicking on your preferred location above.

This will lead you to the Eventbrite ticketing website, where you can book your free place.

You can register also by email, to MUD@housingagency.ie

Evening Programme

6:45pm     Registration (tea/coffee provided)
7pm          Presentation from The Housing Agency
7:45pm     Q&A
8:30pm     Closes

Information and resources for OMCs and MUDs are available on the Agency’s website.

Information in relation to the remediation of defects in apartments and duplexes is available here.

Previous outreach events took place in:

• The Tower Hotel and Leisure Centre, Waterford City | 23 October 2024
• Glenview Hotel and Leisure Club, Delgany, Co. Wicklow | 16 October 2024
• Killarney Plaza Hotel and Spa, Killarney, Co. Kerry | 9 October 2024
• The Ellison Hotel, Castlebar, Co. Mayo | 2 October 2024
• Maldron Hotel, Portlaoise, Co. Laois | 25 September 2024
• Clanree Hotel, Letterkenny, Co. Donegal | 18 September 2024
• Crowne Plaza Airport Hotel, Northwood, Santry | 11 September 2024
• Cork International Hotel, Airport Business Park | 14 November 2023
• Clayton Hotel, Galway | 7 November 2023
• South Court Hotel, Limerick | 24 October 2023
• Carlton Hotel, Blanchardstown | 12 October 2023
• Talbot Hotel, Stillorgan | 10 October 2023
• Hodson Bay Hotel, Athlone | 28 November 2022
• Glenroyal Hotel & Leisure Club, Maynooth | 22 November 2022
• Boyne Valley Hotel & Country Club, Drogheda | 15 November 2022
• Chartered Accountants House, Dublin 2 | 8 November 2022
• Clayton Hotel, Sligo | 25 October 2022
• Talbot Hotel, Stillorgan | 4 March 2020
• Castletroy Park Hotel, Limerick | 26 February 2020
• Clayton Hotel Silver Springs, Cork | 19 February 2020
• Lord Bagenal, Leighlinbridge | 12 February 2020
• Clayton Hotel Dublin Airport | 5 February 2020
• Red Cow Moran Hotel, Dublin | 29 January 2020
• Crowne Plaza Hotel, Blanchardstown | 15 January 2020
• Clayton Hotel, Galway | 4 December 2019
• Nuremore Hotel, Carrickmacross | 27 November 2019

The Housing Agency is currently seeking submissions for the Repair and Leasing Scheme through an open Expression of Interest (EOI).

There are two options available for proposers –

(i) vacant residential properties, where the proposer is submitting a minimum of 5 units within a local authority area and;

(ii) conversions of vacant non-residential properties including former commercial properties and those associated with commercial properties, e.g. over the shop, which will provide a minimum of 5 units.

Proposals submitted via the EOI process will be managed and administered by The Housing Agency, ensuring all necessary documents are included prior to engaging with the local authority.

The goals of the EOI are:

• to increase delivery under the repair and leasing scheme (RLS) and
• to streamline the administration of applications for RLS projects at scale.

The EOI does not change the criteria or parameters of the scheme.

Further information and the EOI form are linked in the below document

Repair and Leasing Expression of Interest Form

The Property Services Regulatory Authority and The Housing Agency will hold a lunchtime live webinar to provide insights into the importance of the Letter of Engagement (or contract) between owners’ management companies (OMCs) and licensed property management agents. 

Maeve Hogan, Chief Executive Officer of the PSRA, will provide an overview of:

• Relevant legislation
• Main features of the Letter of Engagement, including consumer protections
• Interaction with Minimum Standards for licensed agents
• Frequently arising matters / queries
• Sources of further guidance and information

The webinar will be of interest to people involved with OMCs and multi-unit developments, including directors of OMCs, licensed property management professionals, residents, Local Authorities, and Approved Housing Bodies.

The hour-long webinar will take place at 12.30pm on Tuesday 20 May 2025.

Registration for this free event is required via this Zoom Link 

Upon registration a confirmation email will issue with information about how to join the webinar.

Questions for the webinar Q&A may be emailed in advance before 12pm on Friday 16 May 2025 to MUD@housingagency.ie.

The session will be recorded for future use.

Places are limited to 1,000 attendees on a first-come first-served basis.

By registering for this webinar, you consent for the purposes of event management to the processing by The Housing Agency and the PSRA of your personal data (name and email address).

Disclaimer: 

Information provided during the webinar is general in nature.  It should not be considered to amount to legal advice, and no reliance should be placed on it.  Neither The Housing Agency nor the Property Services Regulatory Authority may be held responsible for actions or failure to act on foot of the information provided.  Legal or other professional advice should be sought on individual circumstances.

The Housing Agency and the Institute of Public Administration (IPA) will host the 2025 Housing Practitioners’ Conference, taking place in the Radisson Blu Hotel, Athlone, Co Westmeath on Thursday, 10th April and Friday 11th April (half day). 

The conference will involve expert speakers and workshops. The conference brochure is available to view here - Conference Brochure

The workshop brochure is available here - Workshop Brochure

The conference is aimed at housing practitioners including local authority staff, approved housing bodies and Government officials. 

To register for the conference please visit the IPA website here - Housing Practitioners' Conference 2025 | Registration 

Join our webinar series on community-led housing!

Community-led housing encompasses a wide range of approaches to housing, but they all share a common goal – to meet a local housing need via collaboration, empowerment and mutual support.

Our webinar series aims to raise awareness of community-led housing as a new form of affordable housing in Ireland, to showcase examples of it in other countries and reflect on the future of community-led housing in Ireland.

There will be four webinars in our series on the following topics:

1. Introducing community-led housing
2. Community-led housing as affordable housing
3. Community-led housing for age friendly living
4. State support for community-led housing

You can register for the webinars individually at the links below. 

• Introducing Community-led Housing Tickets, Wed, Feb 12, 2025 at 12:00 PM | Eventbrite
• Community-Led Housing as Affordable Housing Tickets, Tue, Feb 25, 2025 at 12:00 PM | Eventbrite
• Community-Led Housing for Age-Friendly Living Tickets, Tue, Mar 11, 2025 at 12:00 PM | Eventbrite
• State Support for Community-Led Housing Tickets, Wed, Mar 26, 2025 at 11:30 AM | Eventbrite

• To view the slides and webinar recording for session one, Introducing Community-Led Housing, click here: 
  • Slide deck, 

  • webinar recording. 

     

• To view the slides and webinar recording for session two, Community-Led Housing as Affordable Housing, click here: 
  • Slide deck, 

  • Webinar recording. 

     

• To view the slides and webinar recording for session three, Community-Led Housing for Age Friendly Housing, click here:
  • Slide deck,

  • Webinar recording.

     

• To view the slides and webinar recording for session four, State Support for Community Led Housing, click here: 
  • Slide deck,
  • Webinar recording. 

Sustainable Compact Development, International Case Study Analysis is a report prepared for The Housing Agency by Indecon International Economic Consultants.

The purpose of this analysis is to explore how a number of successful compact residential projects were developed and made viable, and to examine the features of these case studies that makes them successful as areas of compact urban growth.

Together with The Housing Agency, four examples of compact urban growth were selected for the case study analysis, from Austria, Denmark, USA and Germany. They are all examples of brownfield development, i.e. developments on sites which were previously purposed for industrial use.

The development process for each site was examined, from the initial inception to the latest developments. This included research on the stakeholders involved in the development, how the development was financed, the obstacles faced in the development process and how these obstacles were overcome, the compact design features of the development, the externalities considered and whether any policy incentives were used to encourage development on the brownfield site. Each of these elements was considered in the context of the wider approach to compact development in the relevant city.

You can read the full report here - Sustainable Compact Development - International Case Study Analysis

The Housing Agency 2024 Annual Conference took place on 7^th November at The Gibson Hotel, Dublin 1. The theme of this year’s conference was AI & Innovation in Housing.

The conference, which was opened by Michael Carey, Chairman of The Housing Agency, brought together practitioners from across the technology and housing sectors and was attended by representatives from Government Departments, State Agencies, Local Government and Approved Housing Bodies as well as the Private Sector.

The conference examined the role of AI & innovation in housing design and delivery and featured the following expert speakers;

• Theo Lynn – Associate Dean for Research, DCU Business School
• Breffni Greene – Associate Architect, Henry J Lyons
• Will Synnott – Chief Customer Officer, Disperse
• Adele Keane – Chief Operating Officer & Creative Director, Imvizar
• Sabahat Khan – Chief Information Officer, Local Government Management Agency
• Declan Grimes – Senior Engineer, Louth County Council
• Jo Sedley-Burke – Consultant, Campbell Tickell
• Barry Lowry – Office of the Government Chief Information Officer

Presentations from the event along with the event agenda and brochure are available to access at the links provided below;

Revolutionising Energy Efficiency in Social Housing: Observations from the Frontlines (Theo Lynn)

From Project Site to Insight: Leveraging AI and 360° Imagery for Smarter Housing Construction Developments (Will Synnott)

Telling the Stories of Places with Augmented Reality (Adele Keane)

Ireland’s Local Government Digital & ICT Strategy 2030 (Sabahat Khan)

Ethics and Sector Readiness for AI Adoption in Housing (Jo Sedley-Burke)

AI - Opportunities for the Public Sector (Barry Lowry)

Access the agenda here - Agenda

Access the full brochure here - Brochure

Access video highlights here - Video 

Access the full conference report here - Report

If you would like to be notified of future events hosted by The Housing Agency you can sign up to our Training & Events Mailing List here.

Housing Conditions and Integrated Care for Older People: Tallaght University Hospital and partners, identifying common housing conditions affecting older people in South Dublin.

The report was prepared as an action from the Housing Conditions for Older People Group (HCFOP), a group chaired by The Housing Agency. Members of this group include:, TrinityHaus, Age Friendly Ireland, Building Research Establishment (BRE), Meath County Council (Barry Lynch), South Dublin County Council (Colin Ward), Age Action, NDA and Tallaght University Hospital.

The research report was funded by the Meath Foundation, based in Tallaght University Hospital (TUH).

Research aims: The research aimed to investigate the link between common housing conditions and hazards that affect older people’s health in the South Dublin area, and their impact on TUH healthcare delivery.

The research highlighted three main issues:

• The serious implications that poor housing conditions have for older people in Ireland, the consequences for health and wellbeing outcomes, and the impact this has on the integrated care for older persons.
• The urgent need for better housing data, national housing condition surveys, and centralised data platforms.
• The need to support and expand integrated approaches to housing and the care of older people in Ireland by bringing together key partners including: hospitals; the Integrated Care Programme for Older People; local authorities; and the Healthy Age Friendly Homes Programme.

To read the report click here - Housing Conditions and Integrated Care for Older People. 

To read the Executive Summary, click here - Housing Conditions and Integrated Care for Older People - Executive Summary. 

The report will be launched online on Friday 6th September from 12-1pm. The event will be chaired by The Housing Agency, with lead authors Tom Grey and Jennifer O’Donoghue of TrintyHaus Research Centre at Trinity College Dublin (TCD), and Professor Des O’Neill a specialist in geriatric and stroke medicine based at TUH and TCD presenting.

Register for the webinar here - Housing Conditions and Integrated Care of Older People Tickets, Fri, Sep 6, 2024 at 12:00 PM | Eventbrite