Room to Improve (v2)

He is under Noel Kelly like tubs so Apple doesn’t fall far from the tree

My husband wondered was the roof asbestos (we didn't watch it all so may have missed an explanation) but when they originally bought the house, assuming they used a mortgage, the bank would have insisted that they have an engineer's report confirming that the house was structurally sound and habitable. And yet, as folks are saying, it is now "derelict"? These are issues that should certainly be highlighted now! My own home is 24 years old. It was a new build then and is far from 'derelict' or uninhabitable. We are very warm and comfortable. But yes, I would like to make certain changes and upgrades - which I can't afford. It does gall a bit to think that my bog-standard home - which is perfectly sufficient to house me and my family - will never be 'upgraded' to the dizzy heights of this house which has qualified for grants every taxpayer is contributing to. I have to admit to looking at the social housing which has been built recently in my local town .. air to water heating, probably A rated ... and yes, I doubt I will ever afford to make those upgrades. Watch this space for a public outcry I think!

...for people to be making assumptions on stuff they cannot possibly know.

1. What was wrong with the roof and why it was deemed unsound.
2. Did the house meet the criteria of 'derelict' or 'vacant' as per the rules not their personal definitions of the terms.

Regarding where they might have got funding, they sold a house to buy the bungalow.

Her mother also passed away since 2020, so there might have been an inheritance.

Both mentioned in this article

They mentioned getting the grants and all was sorted on that front but also mentioned the builder was happy to meet the shortfall till the grants arrived . So were they just approved and hadn’t received them or was it they were waiting for them to be approved and his meeting with minister was push the process along . It all seems very cloak and dagger..

No way in hell any builder would take risk unless he was guaranteed in writing that the money was in the way.

neighbour of mine bought a house which hadn’t been lived in for about 10 years , a lot of water damage and internals need gutting. He was telling me the absolute hassle and hoops he is jumping through to even get the vacant home grant is madness ( kildare county council) . They are looking for all sorts of proof it has been lived . He even invited county council officials to inspect the house and still getting no where. RTI making out it’s a simple process , definitely a few strokes pulled to get the €100,000

Wow,what a nasty and snide comment.

I agree lots of girls overdo it on the fake tan,it's not a good look I agree.

I don't think that lady was an example of that though.I thought she looked gorgeous but what came across most was her lovely bubbly personality.She seemed a sound skin and the husband too.

Bare in mind it's likely the couple and their friends and family might see this thread.

No I haven't 'been corrected'

A property can be deemed derelict if it deemed to be unsafe.

This property's roof was deemed unsafe.

All you have is guesswork and conspiracy. And a refusal to accept your definition is different to the definition sought by the grant administrators.

Really Francie?? I think you're putting yerself way out on a limb here. This saga has legs.

Could Bannon (the 2nd most trusted man in Ireland) go the same way as the most trusted man in Ireland?

They share similar characteristics and the same agent.

You'd think it was a beehive hut on Skellig Michael such is the hyperbole by Bannon.

I've about 10 clients enquiring about vacant home grant. I've done some reports confirming derelict but these were houses that have no heating, have ceilings falling down, broken windows etc. No issue there.

The grant is clearly for the refurbishment part of the dwelling only. The spend breakdown is clearly outlined in the grant documents. All OK there

BUT

From what I've seen, certificate of Exemption or Compliance with Planning will be required.

You cannot Certify half the property as being compliant so imo when planning is required for an extension, it would need to be Certified compliant before the grant is paid even if the grant is only funding the refurbishment.

As an example of how awkward the process is proving to be, nobody I've dealt with sofar has stuck with the application despite the houses being the very definition of the type the grant is intended for.

The major issues are no funding until end, poor response times and patchy info from council and tight time scale.

Some further updates here, aka some covering.

Interestingly they say the lack of PP didn't affect the grants as the refurbishment was separate to the extension!