7,200 apply for 161 new cost-rental homes in Santry

More than 7,200 applications were received for 161 new homes at a major Dublin cost-rental scheme development, Tuath Housing has confirmed.

Cost-rental offers tenants secure leases at rates that are a minimum of 25 per cent below market rates. At the Santry development, rents are 30 per cent below market levels.

Tuath officially opened 255 new ultra-low-energy homes at Whitehaven in Santry - its first Passive House scheme and among the largest of its kind in the State.

Whitehaven - developed with Cairn and Fingal County Council - is one of Ireland’s first social housing schemes built to Passive House standard, featuring triple glazing, airtight construction, heat-recovery ventilation, and design measures to reduce damp, mould and noise.

Launching its second Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Report at the development, Tuath said the demand for Whitehaven’s Cost Rental properties showed the “urgent need for long-term, affordable homes in Dublin”.

Tuath expects to deliver almost 2,300 new social and cost-rental schem homes this year, bringing its total supply to more than 7,000 over the past three years.

According to the AHB, 82% of its homes meet NZEB or BER A2 energy performance, and all new homes have met NZEB standards since 2021. More than 600 older properties have been retrofitted to reduce energy bills and emissions.

However, the organisation warned of sector-wide challenges, including the cost and complexity of upgrading older homes and the difficulties in retrofitting apartment buildings managed by owner management companies.

Officially launching the development and the ESG Report, Minister for Housing James Browne said: “We need more homes like these across all tenures. Our goal is to make sustainable housing standard.

“As materials and expertise become more available, the cost of building sustainably keeps falling, allowing us to deliver long-term environmental and social value as a standard, not an exception,” he said.

Cairn chief executive Michael Stanley said almost 700 people would soon live in the scheme and that Passive House design would “deliver long-term energy savings and high-quality living”. Cairn and Tuath are currently working on 268 further homes at Niven Oaks, due for completion in 2026.

Speaking on Tuath’s ESG commitments, Will McCabe, director of the board, said: “Every new home we provide is an opportunity to do better.”