The Minister for Housing has announced the end of "turnkey" acquisitions for social housing. Applications will cease at the end of 2027. Turnkey acquisitions involve buying newly built, finished homes from developers. Output from the existing pipeline is expected to continue during 2027 and 2028 and, in some cases, 2029, with delivery levels reducing over time. The plan is to deliver social housing instead by expanding own-build programmes from local authorities, housing bodies and the Land Development Agency. The Minister argues that some councils had become too reliant on buying completed developments which would otherwise have been offered to private buyers. Critics disagree. A UCD social policy professor called the phase-out "misguided" and said social housing output will "decline significantly". She said direct construction needs time to build up land banks and construction capacity.
Dublin City Council's monthly housing supply report tracks projected delivery across the council, approved housing bodies (AHBs) and Part V. Part V requires private developers to hand over a share of homes for social and affordable housing. A September 2026 council committee briefing said the pipeline to the end of 2030 includes around 4,000 cost rental homes and around 1,000 affordable purchase homes. "Starter homes" will become the new umbrella term covering affordable purchase and cost rental.
On rents, the council's new Differential Rent Scheme, which started on 6 April 2026, is expected to raise the average share of household income spent on rent from 12% to 13%. The council owns and maintains approximately 29,000 social homes.
