Applications open on Tuesday for south Dublin cost-rental homes

Shanganagh Castle rents set at €1,175 a month for a studio to €1,775 for a three-bed apartment

Affordable purchase houses went on sale at Shanganagh Castle last month costing up to €495,000, making them the most expensive homes built under the affordable housing scheme to date.
Affordable purchase houses went on sale at Shanganagh Castle last month costing up to €495,000, making them the most expensive homes built under the affordable housing scheme to date.

Applications to rent new State-subsidised homes in south Dublin for €1,175 a month for a studio to €1,775 for a three-bed apartment, will open on Tuesday.

The 195 cost-rental apartments at Shanganagh Castle, near Shankill will be available to workers earning up to €66,000 after tax who meet the eligibility criteria for the scheme.

Affordable purchase houses went on sale in the estate last month costing up to €495,000, making them the most expensive homes built under the affordable housing scheme to date.

The cost-rental apartments include 19 studios, 40 one-beds, 107 two-beds and 29 three-beds. The monthly rent for a one-bed apartment has been set at €1,250, while two-beds will cost €1,575 a month.

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Applications will open at noon on Tuesday and will remain open for a week. A lottery will be run in the first week of January to select renters from the eligible applicants.

Under the cost-rental system, rents are based on the cost of building, managing and maintaining the homes, and not market rates. Tenants have long-term security, with leases running to several years available.

In addition to the income limits, applicants must be able to demonstrate they can afford the advertised rent, which should not account for more than 35 per cent of their monthly net income. Applicants cannot be in receipt of any social housing supports, including rent supplement or housing assistance payment (HAP) and must not own a property.

Almost 600 homes are being built at Shanganagh Castle, by the Land Development Agency in what is its largest housing scheme to date. Most of the homes are apartments, and more than half - 306 - are being designated for cost rental tenants.

Despite the high cost of the affordable purchase houses which ranged from €334,600 for a two-bedroom house to €495,000 for the largest three-bed, more than 1,000 buyers applied for just 51 available houses.

It is expected the cost-rental apartments will also generate considerable interest from applicants. The application portal will go live at noon at lda.ie/affordable-homes/lda-cost-rental where further information on eligibility criteria is also available.

The rents set for Shanganagh are lower than those at O’Devaney Gardens, the estate currently under construction in Dublin city near the Phoenix Park, where a one-bedroom apartment is expected to cost €1,490 a month, a two-bedroom apartment €1,695, and a three-bed €1,895. These apartments are not expected to be available until 2026.

The remaining 111 cost-rental homes at Shanganagh are due to become available next year, along with 40 affordable purchase apartments. The remaining 200 apartments will be used for social housing for those on Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council’s waiting list.

Meanwhile, in north Dublin, applications will open at 9am on Wednesday for 80 cost-rental apartments operated by housing body Clúid.

Clúid Housing, Ireland’s leading AHB, is opening applications for 80 new Cost Rental homes at Parkside, Belmayne, Dublin 13.
Clúid Housing, Ireland’s leading AHB, is opening applications for 80 new Cost Rental homes at Parkside, Belmayne, Dublin 13.

Rents for the 31 one-bed apartments at Parkside, Belmayne, Dublin 13, have been set at €1,320 per month with 49 two-bed apartments costing €1,641 per month, a saving of 29 per cent on the market rent, Clúid said. Applications can be made at cluid.ie.

Olivia Kelly

Olivia Kelly

Olivia Kelly is Dublin Editor of The Irish Times