"It's a total, total mess" - Backlash Erupts As Government Launches Tender To Purchase Derelict Properties For Asylum Seekers

A tender by the Department of Integration, seen by Kfm, is seeking expressions of Interest from property owners

The Government has launched an initiative to buy up derelict properties to accommodate asylum seekers.

A tender by the Department of Integration, seen by Kfm, is seeking expressions of interest from property owners, private developers and building contractors who are interested in selling or leasing existing properties/buildings in turnkey condition.

It is also seeking existing properties that require upgrading/refurbishment/renovation.

It states that all properties acquired through this expression of interest process will be to provide accommodation for International Protection (IP) applicants and must be on the terms of vacant possession.

"This is a total, total mess," said Blessington Cllr in the Baltinglass Municipal area Gerry O' Neill.

He said nine properties have been bought in his region to accommodate asylum seekers.

He claimed that "properties are being bought up daily by people who are refurbishing them and fitting them out for refugees. This in turn is causing huge problems for people who are on the housing list, who have been told by the local authority to go and find a property through HAP."

Kfm recently reported how there is just one property available for a single person/couples through discretionary HAP rates in Kildare.

No HAP property's were available for parents or couples with one or two children within the standard limits.

"It's a huge issue throughout the country," O'Neill said.

He added: "I'm dealing with people day in, day out, who are desperate for accommodation."

He claimed that people on the housing list "haven't a hope".

In Kildare, the number of homes available to buy nationwide on March 1st stood at below 10,500 while prices continue to rise, according to the latest Daft.ie House Price report.

Prices across the county in the first three months of 2024 were 6% higher than a year previously, compared to a rise of 3% seen a year ago.

Cllr O'Neill said in his region alone, nine properties have been bought up to accommodate individuals in direct provision, Ukrainian refugees or asylum seekers.

Meanwhile, Kildare South Senator Fiona O'Loughlin argued that Government intervention in the private rental market to house International Protection Applicants should be "stopped".

Speaking on Kildare today, she said she would not want derelict properties used just to house asylum seekers.

She said Kildare County Council has attempted to buy properties for use among communities, but have been pushed out of the market by private buyers seeking to house international protection applicants.

She claimed that new regulations to combat the practice will take time to have any impact.

She outlined how there is a very real concern that "locals will be further priced out of the market", with fears that landlords will buy up homes in estates to tap into this "lucrative opportunity".

"There's a very real concern that these will be completely excluded from the property market, exorbitant as it even is presently. The residents of this older established estate are some of the finest people; they would have hopes that family members could possibly buy or rent close to them."

She added: "They are hugely concerned, as are many, that we will have landlords buying up properties and estates to tap into this lucrative opportunity should it present itself."

She said the issue is not about who is being housed, but the start of a practice where IPAS are taking from the private market - with just 13 homes available to rent in Newbridge.

It's understood that landlords housing International Protection Applicants are being paid up to €76 per person per night.

"The ordinary working person could not compete with rent rates IPAS are paying," she said.

Kfm recently highlighted how a single house in Pairc Mhuire in Newbridge is to be let by the Government to house up to 12 International Protection Applicants.

Earlier this month, up to 70 residents of the Pairc Mhuire estate attended a public meeting to express their concerns and dissatisfaction at the situation.