‘To be clear, this was the only homeless prevention measure working for my constituents’
Houses along the River Lee in Cork
The number of second-hand homes purchased by Cork City Council dropped by more than half last year, with a local TD now slamming the Government for what he describes as ‘cruel cuts’ to a life-changing scheme. In 2025, Cork City Council acquired 63 second-hand homes through the State’s Second-Hand Acquisitions Programme, down from 135 in 2024.
The scheme provides funding for local authorities, which is used to purchase homes and build up the housing stock for vital programmes, such as the Tenant In Situ (TIS) scheme. The programme also helps to provide housing for those leaving long-term homelessness, people with disabilities, and older people.
The TIS scheme allows Cork City Council to purchase homes from landlords who have informed their tenants of their intention to sell. If the landlord chooses to sell to the council, the tenant can continue their rental agreement under the jurisdiction of the local authority.
The latest figures surrounding Cork City Council’s housing acquisitions were provided to Sinn Féin TD Thomas Gould via a parliamentary question. The Cork North Central TD stated that initiatives like the TIS scheme were among the most effective homelessness prevention measures, and he has been advocating for a larger funding allocation in 2026.
In April of this year, Cork City Council announced the closure of its tenant-in-situ scheme, citing a lack of funding. This led to protests being held outside Cork City Hall, with tenants sharing how difficult it is to find a home during the ongoing housing crisis as they faced the looming threat of homelessness.
Several tenants were left in the dark following the closure, as while the council had agreed to purchase their landlord’s home and continue the agreement, a lack of funding left them unable to go through with the deal. The scheme was later reopened in September after an additional €2m was allocated by the Government, and councils were permitted to use up to 30% of the estimated 2026 funding.
Deputy Gould has raised concerns about the dramatic drop in housing acquisitions compared to the previous year and criticised the ‘cruel cuts’ made by the Government.
He said: “Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael tried to close the tenant in situ scheme in Cork city completely. Thankfully, we fought back against this and managed to get the scheme reopened. Unfortunately, the scheme was significantly reduced, and the criteria now restrict many people from accessing this.
“To be clear, this was the only homeless prevention measure working for my constituents. It was a lifeline for those facing homelessness. It meant landlords could sell and the Council could house vulnerable people. In 2024, 135 purchases were completed by Cork City Council. This reduced to just 63 this year.”
Deputy Gould stated that the impact of a reduction in housing acquisitions can be seen in the latest homelessness figures, which show that 712 adults were accessing emergency accommodation here in Cork, up from 562 in 2024.
“Many of these people could have been saved the trauma of homelessness but this cruel Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael government decided to penny pinch instead. We are awaiting the 2026 allocation and we will be fighting for a significant increase to allow this scheme to prevent homelessness and reduce trauma,” he concluded.
In response to Deputy Gould’s query, Minister for Housing James Browne highlighted that an extra €2m was allocated to the city council last year, which was used to house the most vulnerable families and that any funding that wasn’t used in 2026 will be carried over into 2025. The Minister also said that the funding for the 2026 Second-Hand Acquisitions Programme will be confirmed and announced early this year.
Minister Browne said: “I allocated an additional €2 million in September to support acquisitions by Cork City Council for households, particularly larger families with children, to exit emergency homeless accommodation into housing. Any funding not drawn down from this allocation this year will be carried into 2026 and remain ringfenced from the council’s broader 2026 Second-Hand Acquisitions Programme allocation.
“Notably, there was more than adequate scope available within the original €325 million allocated to the programme this year to support all acquisitions that could be completed by local authorities by end-year. Accordingly, those local authorities that indicated they would likely expend their full initial allocation, but could progress and complete additional acquisitions and draw down the relevant funding this year if additional monies were available, were approved to do so. Both Cork City and County Councils were approved to progress additional acquisitions on this basis.”
The Minister also referenced the Government’s decision to allow local authorities to enter into commitments for 2026 to a value of up to 30% of their original 2025 acquisitions budget. Minister Browne said that this allowed for a multi-annual approach that facilitates local authorities to plan and progress acquisitions from one year to the next with a higher level of certainty
He continued: “This provides Cork City and County Councils with scope to commit €6 million and €4.5 million respectively for acquisitions, which would be likely only to complete and drawdown in 2026. This includes acquisitions to support exits from homelessness, tenancy sustainment via tenant in situ, and other priority cohorts such as older persons, persons with disabilities, etc.”