The Minister for Housing has said that he intends to propose a 100 per cent redress scheme for defective homes built during the Celtic Tiger.
The Irish Times reported on Tuesday that Darragh O'Brien said he would propose a full redress scheme to Cabinet, but stressed that any proposed scheme would be subject to approval by ministers.
It is estimated that 100,000 homes built in the State between 1991 and 2013 are defective, according to a July 2022 report from a Government-appointed working group. Properties were built without adequate fire safety material, and various other structural defects.
Now, an estimated €2.5 billion is needed to make these homes safe again.
"I want us to help people to fix their apartments and homes and make them safe, and this Government is committed to helping there," Mr O'Brien told The Irish Times in a pre-Christmas interview.
"The average cost [per apartment], as far as we can estimate, is about €25,000 per unit. Some are a lot more, some are less. There’s a range of cost, from about €1.56 billion to €2.5 billion, to be able to rectify the 100,000 or so homes that require remediation."
Affected home-owners Sam and Odette Doran told BreakingNews.ie that in August, they and other residents of The Crescent in Dublin 12 received news that they faced a €68,5000 bill to fix defects in the apartment complex.
These defects stemmed from the original construction process. “Essentially, when we moved in there in 2005, we moved into a defective building, unbeknown to ourselves,” Odette said.
Living in a defective building has had a huge impact on those who live there day to day, Sam said.
“You’re living under a threat,” Sam reasoned. “Do you have a home? Do you not have a home?”
