Room to Improve (v2)

The whole point was that they wanted the view.

Pity the government wouldn't throw buckets of money at the thousands of home owners in Donegal, Mayo and beyond to get their crumbling homes fixed.

They created a scheme that is next to impossible to access, with Donegal County Council asking for so many hoops to be jumped through before you can move through each stage of the process. People have been in it for a few years and are basically no further forward to getting their homes fixed.

Correct. Dermot said last night it was practically a new build and the Quantity Surveyor Claire said " "Its essentially a brand-new build here for €1972 per sq.m "

Why is the taxpayer giving over 98,000 towards a brand new build for this particular couple?

Other people in the country are not being allowed take off rooves and knock walls of perfectly good 1970's bungalows and rebuild them while getting grands for a vacant house and derelict house. The house was neither vacant or derelict?

Fraud if you ask me, plain and simple.

Lovely couple, obviously dealing with a few hearbreaking events and making the best of what they had.

That said, essentially it was 300K for a site but thats yet another issue with our failed planning system I would suggest.

I am not sure about Tipp but I know in Galway is is ridiculously difficult to get planning permission on a site, there are a significant number of hoops to jump through, including the housing need test which is difficult to pass if you already have a house. It's "easier" buy an old house and remodel etc

In general they spent a tonne of money on the house - closee to 600 K all in, a few miles out from the village on a road I doubt you could walk on, granted a decent view. If they could afford it and are happy - thats sound.

Fine looking house in the listing, not bad at all, certainly not what I would call derelict and so qualify for a derelict grant!

According to the property price register it was only sold on 15/09/2022.

And elsewhere in the country people are going through loops to show no electricity useage etc.

Its not derelict, nowhere near it.

Try and tell Revenue that your house is a derelict house and shouldn't be liable for Property tax and see what they will ask for.

It sticks to high heaven. The roof was fine when the property was sold less than 2 years ago. The property went for €303,000, which is an above average price for a dwelling in rural Ireland? It surely is a poor use of €99,000 of taxpayers money that they should get to make on what Dermot's Claire ( the Q.S. ) called , and I quote, "essentially a new build".

A new build is not refurbishing a vacant and derelict house. And it seems it was not vacant or derelict.

Dermot himself called it a new build or words to that effect when the jcb was pulling down a 3m high section of (perfectly good) exterior wall.

If they can get €99,000 in grants, why cannot everyone else?

I completely agree with you, my sister lives in Donegal and its enraging what has happened with Mica up there. I am just saying I don't blame the couple in last nights show. Dermot Bannon suggested all those grants. And he seems to be publicly saying everything is ok by being on the front of the Sunday Indo yesterday. I am not saying it is right/ wrong/ good/bad..... I am simply stating the facts.

I know an awful lot about the entire process of these grants. My own daughter has been going through a derelict farmhouse renovation process for the last 2 years, trying to avail of the grants and trying now to get them paid, its all they've talked about .

I think not. I mentioned earlier in the thread, I suspect DB has led a few couples up the garden path in terms of what grants they can avail of and his latest activism is probably an attempt to show those couples that he is trying to do something about it.

I would love to know what architects think of DB and RTI... I'm not sure the ridiculous budget overruns and general attitude to spend is doing the profession much good.

Well I hope that poor couple don't have to repay another 100k. Would be devastating news for them.

I viewd it again today and as other posters have said it was clearly being lived in all the rooms had items you would expect to see in a house, kids toys would you bring your kids into a so called derelict house, it's a joke

I agree they are very nice people but if a person gets money and it turns out they weren't entitled to it then it needs to be paid back.

Not saying that happened in this case but if there are questions to be answered then it should be looked into.

Couple of points:

couple are young and like the bling. Fine.

Builder funding the build while waiting for grants? Totally unrealistic!

Budget or lack thereof…it was said our max budget was 220k suddenly it’s 330ish? Ok I don’t know about their finances but purchasing a 300k house and spending another 365k on it makes that house underwater straight away.

grants, think we all can agree it wasn’t derelict…end of!

They seemed to just be lead by Bannon. No personal imput into that build at all.

if Bannon wanted a proper challenge I’m game. Have a property that could do with some work. Have the budget too… but I know what I like and I’m sure I would cause him no end of issues.

They may not have gotten planning on a greenfield site which is the issue with many such greenfield sites.

I doubt very much you'd spend 30K on an architect for a new build, even with sign off fees. You'd probably spend 30K before you had laid a block in third party,council, utility fees etc alright.