Ireland’s housing crisis has left thousands struggling to find affordable homes, particularly middle-income families who earn too much for social housing but cannot compete in the private market. This is where the Cost Rental Housing Scheme comes in.
Introduced under the Affordable Housing Act 2021, cost rental allows you to pay rent based on the cost of building, managing and maintaining the homes. It does not include any profit for a developer. Rents are typically at least 25% below market rates, so tenants can save quite a lot of money.
Demand for homes today is overwhelming. As Tuath Housing’s Chief Operations Officer, Bronagh D’Arcy, recently noted:
“At Folkstown Park in Balbriggan, we had over 2,800 applicants for just 50 cost rental homes. That shows the absolute demand for more properties like this.”
The question is: how does Ireland deliver cost rental at scale quickly and affordably?
As always – my answer lies in modular construction.
Who is Eligible for Cost Rental Housing in Ireland?
Cost rental is designed for households who:
- Have a net income under €66,000 per year in Dublin or €59,000 elsewhere.
- Are not in receipt of social housing supports such as HAP.
- Must be permanent residents and tax domiciled in Ireland.
- Do not own another property in Ireland or abroad.
- Can afford to pay the cost rent for the home.
- Match their household size to the home type advertised.
According to the Land Development Agency, the system ensures that rent will be no more than 35% of net household income, giving tenants a real opportunity to pay for housing.
Tenancies are also secure, as cost-rentals are offered on long-term leases that provide stability. This is unlike the uncertainty of the private rental landlords.
Who Offers Cost Rental Homes in Ireland?
- The Land Development Agency. See Listings HERE.
- Approved Housing Bodies. Download the list of over 400+ AHBs HERE.
- Local Authorities. Reach out to any one of 31 local authorities HERE.
What Do I Need to Apply for Cost Rental Housing?
Each cost-rental scheme is advertised separately, depending on who makes them available. There is no single uniform application portal in Ireland. Depending on whether the landlord is the LDA, a local authority, or an Approved Housing Body (AHB), the process may differ slightly.
KEY STEPS.
- Register interest online via the provider’s website (applications are typically not accepted by email, phone, or post).
2. Confirm eligibility by proving household income, residency, and property ownership status.
3. Submit documentation such as:
- Proof of ID and address for all household members.
- Proof of residency in Ireland.
- Proof of income and employer references for all adults.
- Bank statements.
- Landlord references (or alternative references if new to renting).
4. Lottery allocation – If there are more applicants than homes available, a computerised lottery typically decides who gets a tenancy.
This ensures fairness but also highlights the overwhelming demand for homes in Ireland today.
Why Modular Homes Are Perfect for Cost Rental Accommodation.
1. Speed of Delivery
Ireland’s biggest housing challenge is its limited supply compared to demand. Standard concrete builds can take years to complete, and they can be delayed by weather, labour shortages, and complex construction processes.
Modular homes on the other hand, are built in factories and assembled on site. That allows them to be delivered in less than half the time with proper oversight.
For cost rental, this speed means tenants can move in faster and pressure on waiting lists is eased sooner.
2. Value for Money.
As Sean O’Connor, Chief Executive of Tuath Housing, recently said:
“The Government needs a laser focus on the cost of production. We need to make these homes cheaper and produce more.”
Modular housing delivers exactly this.
With standardised designs, reduced material waste, and lower labour costs, modular techniques can reduce construction costs by 10–20% compared to traditional concrete builds. Lower production costs also mean lower cost rents for tenants overall. This perfectly aligns with the cost rental scheme’s core principle.
3. Easy to Expand for National Demand.
Tuath delivered 2,500 new homes in 2023 with €571 million in capital spend. Impressive, but still far short of the demand.
Modular factories allow multiple projects to be developed in parallel. Once designs are approved, the same housing modules can be rolled out nationwide, ensuring that supply keeps pace with demand.
This kind of scalability is essential if cost rental is to become mainstream rather than just a niche option.
4. Sustainability and Climate Goals
Cost rental is meant to provide not just affordable homes, but sustainable homes as well. Modular housing is perfect in this situation for the following reason:
- Factory builds produce less waste due to efficient, standardised techniques.
- Homes are built with airtight insulation, which reduces the amount of energy used.
- Modular homes use a lot of wood which is a renewable resource.
For tenants, this means lower utility bills. This aligns with the cost rental’s promise of long-term affordability.
5. Flexibility for Communities
Cost rental properties aims to serve diverse groups of people with different needs, i.e. single professionals, couples, families, and lone parents. Modular construction techniques allow for quick adaptation and homes can be relocated or repurposed if demographics shift.
This reduces the risk of stranded assets that are sitting unused. An unused 1-bed studio apartment can be disassembled and added to another modular home to form a 4-bed family home if needed.
This flexibility ensures developments can be tailored, modified and adapted to changing demographics without reinventing the wheel each time.
Traditional vs Modular Builds for Cost Rental Housing.
| Factor | Traditional Construction | Modular Construction |
|---|---|---|
| Build Speed | 12–24 months per scheme, subject to delays (weather, labour, planning). | With most work done in factories & proper oversight, projects can take half the time. |
| Cost Efficiency | Higher labour + material waste, driving up per-unit cost. | 10–20% savings from standardisation, less waste, reduced labour. |
| Ability to Scale | Limited by site-based work and labour shortages. | Factory replication allows rapid scaling across multiple sites. |
| Sustainability | Higher emissions, waste, and energy inefficiency. | Energy-efficient builds, reduced waste, higher use of renewable resources & easier integration of heat pumps/solar. |
| Tenant Affordability | Higher build costs = higher rents, even under cost rental rules. | Lower build costs = rents can be reduced to 30% below market. |
The government has committed to scaling up supply, with mandatory 20% social and affordable allocations in new developments from 2026. But unless build times are reduced and costs controlled, even ambitious targets will fall short.
It’s not just about building more homes; it’s about building the right kind of homes for cost rental’s unique promise.
Conclusion: A Natural Partnership.
Cost rental is one of the most promising innovations in Irish housing policy in decades. But its success relies on supply, and on keeping rents genuinely affordable for the regular homeowner.
Modular housing is NOT a side option. I believe it is the only construction method that can make cost rental practical at scale. Compared to standard homes, they are cheaper to build, quicker to deliver, more sustainable, and adaptable.
If Ireland wants to give the next generation secure, affordable homes and prevent further emigration of those “locked out” of the housing market, it must embrace modular construction as the backbone of cost rental delivery.
Because if 2,800 people are applying for just 50 homes, then the message is clear – we need more, we need them faster, and we need them cheaper. Modular homes can deliver all THREE.
