In Spring this year Hardware Association Ireland (HAI) decided to conduct some research into the market for Rural Family Homes. This part of the housing market has collapsed from over 23,250 units in 2006 to 5,900 in 2025.
It has been bumping along at 5-6,000 for a number of years.
We had heard several anecdotes about planning decisions, all of which were negative. However, anecdote isn’t data and cannot be used to forge policy.
The survey had three objectives.
- Firstly, we wanted to find out if there is a market for rural family homes.
- Secondly if there is, why aren’t more built, especially in a housing crisis.
- And thirdly, what would be the impact if these homes are not built.
We spoke to 240 stakeholders in the marketplace and below are some of the findings.
On the first question – that of demand – demand far outstrips supply in 90% of responses.
Shortfall?
Is there a shortfall between demand for one-off houses and the completion of one-off houses in your area?
On the second question – why are more not built Overwhelmingly the answer is in Government planning policy and how it is applied. The focus is on the housing need/local need regulation. This was named by almost all participants as a major block to rural family homes. Simply put, this regulation means that you have to prove that you need a house and that you have strong ties to a local area. The absolutist application is resulting in even farmer’s families often denied planning permission to build on their own land.
What needs to change?
The third issue is the impact on rural communities, and the findings are very stark. Without new homes and people living in an area the social fabric of rural communities breaks down.
What will happen if these homes are not built?
Meanwhile, the price of housing increases. Since the report was published the implications of the lack of rural housing was highlighted in a conversation with a merchant in the Southwest. In his area several young trades professionals have emigrated as they could not find or build houses where they wanted to
live. This just compounds the negative spiral caused by the acute shortage of rural housing.
The full report is available on at https://hardwareassociation.ie/rural-family-homes/.
