What Ireland Builds Today Will Shape Tomorrow

Ireland remains in the grip of a deepening housing and homelessness crisis. Despite significant policy attention, recent developments have only intensified pressures on affordability, security, and supply. The Programme for Government 2025 acknowledges this urgency, yet its commitment to delivering 50,000 homes annually—while welcome—falls short of addressing both existing shortfalls and future demand.

Even the more ambitious target of 60,000 homes per year is paired with a strategy that prioritises private investment, aiming to attract €24 billion annually. This reliance on market-led solutions raises concerns about long-term sustainability, especially as policy discourse increasingly shifts toward weakening rent controls. The phasing out of Rent Pressure Zones, for example, risks accelerating rent inflation and erode stability for tenants. Without robust protections, these developments risk pushing more households, particularly low-income renters, into homelessness. The crisis has already escalated to unprecedented levels, with over 15,000 people officially homeless, and figures rising steadily month-on-month for the past four years.

Moreover, the substitution of direct social housing delivery with “social housing solutions” in the private rented sector has led to escalating rent costs, inflated house prices, and the commodification of housing as an investment product. This trend continues to undermine long-term affordability and housing security for vulnerable groups.

Despite the urgency of the situation, official data still fails to capture the full extent of need. No comprehensive mechanism exists to measure the number of hidden homeless, adults trapped in their family homes due to unaffordability, or the true scale of unmet social housing demand.

The coming years are critical. Ireland needs not just more housing, but the right kind of housing—adequate, affordable, and accessible to all. A housing system grounded in social inclusion, affordability, and the public good is not only essential for individual wellbeing, it is foundational to Ireland’s long-term economic and social stability.

Policy Priorities for a Fairer Housing System

To meet these challenges, six key areas must be prioritised:

• Deliver the Right Type of Housing at the Right Scale 
  Prioritise quality, sustainability, and social need in all new housing supply.

• Improve Housing Affordability through Structural Supply-Side Reforms
  Shift from demand-side subsidies to investment in skills development, construction innovation, and modern methods of construction.

• Scale Up Social and Cost-Rental Housing to ensure long-term affordability
  Increase the share of social housing to 20 per cent of overall stock by 2040 and expand not-for-profit cost rentals.

• Prioritise Housing First and Strengthen Homelessness Prevention
  Extend the principles of Housing First to families and rebalance funding toward prevention, tenancy sustainment, and early intervention.

• Deliver Inclusive and Sustainable housing through a Lifecycle Approach
  Ensure universal design, housing diversity, and targeted supports for older people, disabled persons, and Travellers.

• Address Vacancy and Dereliction through Tax Reform and Enforcement
  Reform vacancy-related taxes, enforce land use, and empower local authorities to reactivate underused stock.

The opportunity now exists to reshape Ireland’s housing system—not only to resolve today’s crisis, but to build a more just, inclusive, and resilient society for generations to come. This requires strategic investment and a commitment to housing as a social right—not just a market commodity.

To explore detailed policy recommendations, please see Social Justice Ireland’s full submission to the National Housing Plan 2025–2030.