1. Private Rented Accommodation:

   This works particularly for those who do not require a high level of support, and no serious personal problems such as alcohol or drug dependency.

2. The Local Authority:

   The City or County Council is responsible for the accommodation of adults who have no way of securing their own accommodation. However, the waiting lists in every Local Authority area are so large that it is difficult to meet the demand. People who are homeless, particularly single homeless people, are often low on the priority list.

3. Voluntary Organisations and Housing Associations:

   Their significance as providers of housing is growing today. Most voluntary housing associations provide accommodation for people with special needs, such as the elderly or those with disabilities. Some provide for people who are homeless.

Transitional Housing

For some people who become homeless they may need continued support for a period of time, with the goal of moving on to the other forms of housing tenures.

Transitional housing focuses upon the development of life skills such as budgeting and housekeeping, with the end goal of independent living.

Often the best solution is to provide supported housing where other difficulties can be addressed such as overcoming drug dependency.

Supported housing

Supported housing, also referred to as sheltered housing, provides secure accommodation to older people, people with a disability or serious mental health problems, chronic alcohols, very vulnerable groups who need a continuum of care.

Homelessness can mean losing your dignity CLICK HERE

How many people are homeless?

Globally, there are 100 million homeless people.

Very often when we think of homeless people, we think of people living in shanty towns and shacks in developing countries. However, homelessness exists in developed countries too, including Ireland.

The lastofficial homelessness censuscounted 3,808 homeless people in Ireland in 2011. It is now estimated that there are over 5,000 people who are homeless in Ireland.

Many more live in housing that is inadequate.

Although homelessness has increased in the last few years, April 2015 saw the number of people sleeping rough in Dublin decrease by 40% from 168 in November 2014 to 105. However, the number of people in emergency accommodation has increased by more than 300 to 1,872.

Who is homeless?

When we think of homeless people, we often think of people sleeping rough. However, people are also considered to be homeless if they do not have secure accommodation or if their housing is inadequate. For example, people who are living in Emergency Accommodationdo not enjoy the right to housing.

In Ireland, the Housing Act 1988 provided the first legal definition of homelessness. It was introduced following intensive lobbying by voluntary organisations.

Section 2 states that a person should be considered to be homeless if:

(a) there is no accommodation available which, in the opinion of the authority, he, together with any other person who normally resides with him or who might reasonably be expected to reside with him, can reasonably occupy or remain in occupation of , or

(b) he is living in a hospital, county home, night shelter or other such institution, and is so living because he has no accommodation of the kind referred to in paragraph (a), and

(c) he cannot provide accommodation from his own resources

However, this Act does not place any legal obligation on local authorities to provide housing for people who are homeless. It is also quite a limited definition of homelessness, given that there are many paths into homelessness.

FEANTSA (the European Federation of organisations working with people who are homeless) has developed a broader definition of homelessness that contains four different types of homelessness. The four categories are:

Roofless

People sleeping rough or using night shelters

Houseless

People staying in accommodation for the homeless or people who are due to be released from an institution, such as a hospital or prison

Insecure Housing

People staying temporarily with friends, people under threat of violence or eviction

Inadequate Housing

People living in temporary structures, or housing that is not safe to live in

What do you think?

A home is more than a roof over one’s head. What else is it for?

To see FEANTSA’s full description of homelessness, please click here.

Please click here to read a recent newspaper article about inadequate living conditions in social housing in Dublin.

Next: "How do People Become Homeless?"

Housing waiting list

In 2002, Ireland recorded the highest level of house building in the EU. But despite the record number of houses built during the boom years, the percentage of houses built by local authorities fell sharply, averaging at 6 per cent of all houses built. This was a massive reduction on previous decades.

Between 1922 and 1966, 50 per cent of all houses built were for public housing.

In 1975, local authorities constructed 33 per cent of all new housing.

In 1985, local authorities built 27 per cent.

In 2014, 95 per cent of new houses in Ireland was provided by the market; only 5 per cent of new houses built were non-market.

This shortage of housing, combined with rising house prices, resulted in an enormous expansion of the waiting list for social housing. Many people were no longer in a position to afford the cost of a house.

The latest study in 2013 found there was a waiting list of almost 90,000 households.

In 2005, there were 43,700 households on the waiting list.

In 2008, there were 56, 249 households on the waiting list.

Cost of Housing

Rental Costs

The cost of renting is said to have increased at a higher rate than average earnings in recent years.

For people on low incomes or who are unemployed, the state provides a contribution towards the cost of renting called Rent Supplement. The scheme was orignially designed as an emergency provision, but the latest estimates for 2011 show that there are over 98,000 people now receiving this payment - compared to just 43,000 people a decade ago in 2000. This scheme now costs the State €8.9 million per week and there are additional difficulties, as some landlords will not accept tenants on Rent Supplement. It has also been argued that the level of payment has not increased to keep pace with the general increase in the cost of renting.

Please click here to zoom

Housing is one of our most basic needs

Our homes are more than just a commodity to us - they are the place we live, and so have more value in our lives than something we simply trade on the market like stocks and shares.

In recent years, Ireland experienced an economic boom, during which our property prices grew and grew, as more and more houses and apartments were built. Many people bought houses as investment properties to rent to tenants or to sell later at a profit.

Since the boom years, many people have struggled to live with rising rents, large mortgages and debt. There are also many who have been excluded from the housing market completely.

Although there are now more houses in Ireland than ever before, the market can only provide a home to the people who have enough money to buy it. It is therefore important that there are other suitable options provided for people who cannot afford a home.

If society relied on the market alone for housing, how would people who live on very low incomes, or people who are unemployed, or people who have become homeless, ever have a home?

Who do you think should be responsible for providing and funding housing for those who can't afford it?

Housing Tenures in Ireland

Owner Occupied

Most households in Ireland own their own house. Ireland has one of the highest rates of home ownership in the world – with nearly 70 per cent of the population living in their own homes.

This is a dramatic difference from 1946 when 53 per cent of households in Ireland owned a home. Home ownership is an aspiration for many people in Ireland, and has historically been facilitated by government incentives.

Private Rented Accommodation

Private rented accommodation is provided by private landlord. Like home ownership there has been a dramatic shift in the number of households accessing private rented accommodation.

In 1946 26 per cent of households were in private rented accommodation, by 1991 this dropped to 8 per cent, rising to almost 16 per cent in 2008. This is very low compared to some of our European neighbours. For example France and Sweden have rates of more than 20 per cent, and Germany 51 per cent.

Housing Tenures in Ireland - Continued

Social Housing

Social housing is provided by the state and some not-for-profit organisations for people who would otherwise not be able to afford to purchase their own home, or rent private accommodation.

Local authorities are landlords for almost 90 per cent of social housing. Houses are allocated based on need and rents are based on ability to pay. Housing associations and voluntary organisations, such as St. Vincent de Paul, are now significant providers of housing. They are often funded by the government and where necessary generate funds through fundraising. Housing associations and voluntary organisations can often be flexible in providing innovative housing solutions, particularly for people who need both a place to call home and personal support.