Housing Madness

I'm suggesting a possible quicker way to provide accommodation than new builds. If people were approached with a fair offer from the State, they can say Yes or No. No harm in asking when there is a crisis ongoing.

I've already said that I don't expect everyone to buy in Athenry, twice. Take a deep breath and actually read what I'm saying. I'm saying that if you can't afford to live in Galway city, then commute from places like Athenry. In other words commute from places within commuting distance of Galway. There's not really any other option at the moment, is there?

I'm not trying to push people in well paying jobs out of the city. If they can afford to live in the city, then great. If they can't, then they can't so it looks like it's a commute for them. I'm not saying that our strategy should be getting people to commute, I'm saying the opposite. In an ideal world, we wouldn't have to commute. But we don't live in an ideal world so we have to be realistic. If you can't afford a house in the city, you have to move further afield.

Lets go with your plenty of land in Galway city to build. Why is nobody building on it now if people are crying out for houses? Who owns the land? Who will build them? Who will pay for them? What happens if the cost of building these houses comes in around €300k? Who can afford to buy them? Galway has services and amenities but it doesn't have the infrastructure to support a five-fold increase in residents. The road network is sh1te. What will the traffic be like if there's an estate/multiple estates within the bounds of the city with 2000 houses built in it? Can the water and sewage network cope with a doubling of requirements? It's not as simple as saying we should build in the city. It would be great if everyone could live beside where they work, but it ain't going to happen.

It can be solved, but it will take a generation to do it. Roads/infrastructure etc. need to be improved. Funds or incentives need to be put in place to facilitate building etc. None of it is going to be easy.

Simple question. If you had a job in Galway city but were on €40k and couldn't afford a house there, what would you do?

Why are they empty? Who says they are the same people who own 2 properties have one derelict? You are making massive leaps and bounds for a ridiculously expensive proposal that doesn't solve the problem. The largest owner of derelict property is the councils already. Why not target their inaction.

You really should try arguing a point. There is not a shortage of houses in Ireland there is a occupancy rate issue. Large parts of Dublin and Galway are occupied with one or two OAPs that can house families living in 1-2 bedroom apartments.

I don't care about what the prices are in Galway. I want to know what you want them to be and what high wage is stopping your friends from being able to afford. It is quite obvious you aren't going to give actual figures because you don't know what you are talking about

Why bother if the council already own so much unused property? Not sure what you don't get about this.

You want them to spend more time and money tracking people down to offer to by empty property so the council will do what with it? They aren't doing anything with what they have go why would they be more productive if they got more?

Where are they going to get the staff to do this investigation. Ideas have to have a practical element and yours does not.

They should make the unemployed build housing! Problem solved once there are no follow up question or explanation on how this would work.

You are not comparing notes you are intentionally being vague and refuse to answer details of your claim. I do not believe your claims and you have not backed it up in any way. For that I will take the view you are not genuinely discussing the issue. You change tack when asked direct questions and have not argued any point.

You want me to find a house you are not looking for at an unreasonable price that has no bearing on the arguement you made about higher earners not being able to afford a house in Galway. Do you actually think that makes any point or sense?

You might be overestimating that number. I don't know if this link will stay up, but it says the Local Authorities own 140,000 properties, of which just 4,000 are vacant.

https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/news/special-report-4000-properties-owned-by-councils-empty-in-a-housing-crisis-41244351.html#:~:text=Local%20authorities%20own%20about%20140%2C000,a%20new%20tenant%20moves%20in.

If wages go up, then so will the cost of everything else, including houses/apartments.

It's one thing saying supply needs to increase, it's a different thing to actually supply these houses/apartments.

With the way the price of building materials is going up at the moment, I can actually see builders stopping building as there will be very few people able to afford the houses that they are building.

It's gonna get worse long before it gets better.

Hey now, no need for congrats - when you start with nonsense, it's not that difficult to distil it down further.

You said in one of your above posts that an elderly lady's property should be forcibly sold as it was not her principal private residence and was not in use.

If you don't agree with CPOs for people with second properties, then what is your criteria for the above?

Evidently it is her principle private residence, shes in a care home its fair deal. Its her house. So its got absolutely nothing to do with property developers sitting on properties on main streets across the country. Many of whom are just hoarding money in assets from the banks who might charge them for it. And they wont put a penny into the property at all so it falls down into disrepair. But if a single incentive comes up theyre on it like flies in shite. And frankly thats wrong. Completely wrong. That in itself is an incentive for them to do absolutely nothing.

Tax the arse off it and CPO.

There's the Derelict Sites 1990 in place.

I'm fine with the Council CPOing a building that is derelict and is a danger to the public. I'm not fine with the Council CPOing a house just because it is empty. If a property owner has two houses or more, and the houses are unoccupied but not derelict, I think the State should keep it's nose out of that property owner's business.