Thank you for this. It does clearly corroborate that figure of 9%.
Still, 230,000 dwellings of 2,125,000 in total is a lot to be be vacant during an accommodation crisis. As I said elsewhere, the number of vacant dwellings is higher than most would suspect.
Often the issue is where exactly those vacant dwellings are. Typically, booming metro areas will have a low vacancy rate, while the vacancy rate will be high in rural areas or declining cities, where economic prospects are more dubious.
Demand is local. If someone needs to live in Dublin for their work, it doesn't help them much if there's cheap housing a few hours away.
That's census data, and their collection of data is... imperfect. A lot of those 'vacant' dwellings are one of:
* Occupants refused to engage with census taker (I used to have neighbours who did this; you can theoretically be fined for it but I don't think anyone ever has been)
* Home is in the middle of being sold
* Home is uninhabitable.
* Home is in the literal middle of nowhere.
I'd be in favour of measures to free up vacant housing (punitive tax on vacant housing etc; there _is_ a vacant home tax now but it's pretty small), but I wouldn't hold out much hope of getting a really meaningful amount of housing out of it.
tmnvix|1 year ago
Still, 230,000 dwellings of 2,125,000 in total is a lot to be be vacant during an accommodation crisis. As I said elsewhere, the number of vacant dwellings is higher than most would suspect.
TulliusCicero|1 year ago
Demand is local. If someone needs to live in Dublin for their work, it doesn't help them much if there's cheap housing a few hours away.
rsynnott|1 year ago
* Occupants refused to engage with census taker (I used to have neighbours who did this; you can theoretically be fined for it but I don't think anyone ever has been)
* Home is in the middle of being sold
* Home is uninhabitable.
* Home is in the literal middle of nowhere.
I'd be in favour of measures to free up vacant housing (punitive tax on vacant housing etc; there _is_ a vacant home tax now but it's pretty small), but I wouldn't hold out much hope of getting a really meaningful amount of housing out of it.