Room to Improve (v2)

Zardoz

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121618423#Comment_121618423

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.

KLF

Thought the same, very surprised to see you can 'stack' the grants. Getting the vacant home grant, derelict grant, and the SEAI energy grants together in a home that was suspectly vacant and hardly derelict. They threw in the 'roof was condemned', by who? The builder they got in to make a packet from the work.

Francis McM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121619541#Comment_121619541

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?

ec18

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121619603#Comment_121619603

you can probably can, you just need to have the professionals employed to be able to put the applications together with the right language for them. It's the same for any grants really.....look at the numbers of sports clubs in affluent areas that get govt grants mostly due to the membership being made up of professionals such as solicitors and accountants.

It's not nice but it's how governments work around the world. There are schemes that are exploited

mykrodot

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121617892#Comment_121617892

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 .

NIMAN

Can I ask, is DB appearing on the front of the Indo and the talk of these grants, is this related to the latest episode? Or just coincidence?

PARlance

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121619811#Comment_121619811

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.

Francis McM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121619613#Comment_121619613

Putting something "together with the right language" is a phrase Dermot would use.

Saying a house is vacant when it is not, or is derelict when it is not, in order to get a Vacant / derelict house refurbishment grant is not on, especially when your q.s describes it as essentially a new build ( her words, not mine ).

The diversion of close to 100,000 of taxpayers money is money that could and should have been spent better elsewhere?

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121619811#Comment_121619811

I suspect damage limitation, he probably knows this money may have to be repaid to the government, and he has opened a can of worms?

NIMAN

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121619954#Comment_121619954

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

Ben Bailey

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121616686#Comment_121616686

Certainly agree that miscarriages still bear a stigma and that sharing their loss was brave.

But their loss also brought an additional talking point to what is essentially an entertainment programme on TV.

I'd like to believe that participants retain editorial control over content, but I'd doubt that they do.

Storm 10

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

pjohnson

How in the fcuk is she a business owner.

Absolute disaster with money. Complains about the €250k being 30k over budget before then ramping it up to a cheaper €320k.

Absolutely no notion what in the fùck a budget or money is. She probably pays the fcukin children rather than they pay her.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121617463#Comment_121617463

A couple of things to pull you up on;

1. Just because some someone suffered grief doesn’t make it okay to incorrectly claim grants we all have to pay for at the end of the day.
2. Their story and ability to qualify for some of the grants does not add up. If they are willing to go on a tv show and as well educated as it looks then surely they should expect most viewers to discuss the content of the show. It’s not just on here, anyone watching the program is likely to be discussing it on here because at the end of the day €100k in grants is huge when as others posters eluded to are paying massive rent and can’t even get into this position.
3. a few posters made nasty remarks not all.
4. being on the show is hugely rewarding in terms of product placement (Munster joinery etc).

standardg60

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121620496#Comment_121620496

She owns a montessori, there never was a shortage of money.

Two weeks in a row now the budget has been made out to be extremely tight when it was far from it. One has to wonder if it was a deliberate ploy to secure the grants.

Galwayguy35

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121620062#Comment_121620062

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.

Field east

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121616298#Comment_121616298

I assume that you are not suggesting that they are living in it while it is being renovated!,!!!

NSAman

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.

Field east

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121617513#Comment_121617513

I assume the pay off for the couple agreeing to go on the prog with their bare ovation project is that they got Dermot’ s services free ie re design and overseeing the project to the finish line. If the couple bought a site with no house elsewhere Dermot would not have been interested in a project andthe couple would have to pay an architect circa € 30,000 for the same service

kippy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121620879#Comment_121620879

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.

lmk123

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121620879#Comment_121620879

Ya but if they paid an architect €30k (which it definitely wouldn’t cost) they would probably save over €100k by not using that simpleton DB

thomas 123

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121620914#Comment_121620914

Architects fees can easily be that - many levy a percentage of the build cost.

touts

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121620062#Comment_121620062

If I recall it was very clear in the show that they told Dermot their budget was only 220k. He was the one who went away and designed something that cost an extra 100k and he was the one who told them to apply for the grants to cover that. It was fairly clear on camera that they had no idea about the grants and that he was the one who advised them to do it.

If they have to pay it back I would say they have a very strong legal case against RTE and the show's producers and possibly Dermot himself.

lmk123

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121620921#Comment_121620921

Maybe in different parts of the country but I’ve certainly never heard of anything remotely close to that for a house especially one the size last nights one. Highest I’ve heard of around here was €13.5k that included planning, construction drawings and sign off for stage payments. Anyway

Field east

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121619613#Comment_121619613

The only essential item one needs when applying for a grant, to write a ‘grovelling letter’ etc, etc, etc, etc is a good OXFORD dictionary and an individual who has a ‘way with words”. This combo significantly increases tone chances of a successful outcome

kippy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121620921#Comment_121620921

Architects fees can easily be 30K an a private house? That's just mental.......I would have thought 10 at a push and generally lower.

TinyMuffin

……

FrancieBrady

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121620792#Comment_121620792

If you know what you want get an architectural draughts-person. Why torture yourself and Bannon.

FrancieBrady

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121621007#Comment_121621007

I think a lot of the participants do it for that reason.

Field east

I was disappointed with the inset dormer window up stairs. I thought that more could have been made of it the window itself was only half of the with of the structure housing it and it was nearly A yard back room the front of the structure ‘housing it. I do not know what its purpose was apart from letting light in . It sticks out like a ‘ sore thumb’ when seen from the outside.

the stairs servicing upstairs looked quiet narrow I was disappointed also that there was no mention of the heading system used eg radiators , underfloor heating, air to water, , gas,celectricity or oil, external wall insulation or slabbed inside. The house was very suited to outside insulation because the external walls probably were of mass concrete and the new roof re overhang could allow for the external insulation system.

FrancieBrady

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121621056#Comment_121621056

Wouldn’t be common to be honest and I spent must of my life working in or around the construction trade.

The modern home is vastly preferable to the homes my parents generation built. They simply had no need or time for outdoor leisure living. I’m a fan of loads of daylight and easy access to the outside.