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See below the order of presentations on the day.

Topic 1. GOOD FUNDING MECHANISMS FOR ACHIEVING AFFORDABLE HOUSING

Dr Gerard van Bortel, Assistant Professor Housing Management, Delft University of Technology, Netherlands

The role of the Council of Europe Development Bank

Dr Luigi Cuna and Mr Samir Kulenovic, Council of Europe Development Bank

Funding the right balance: Affordable rental and homeownership

Ms Kath Scanlon, Researcher, London School of Economics

Irish Respondent and Group Discussion

Professor Michelle Norris, Head of School, UCD

 

Topic 2. FINDING THE RIGHT BALANCE BETWEEN AFFORDABLE RENTAL AND AFFORDABLE HOMEOWNERSHIP

The role of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe

Dr Gulnara Roll, Head of Housing and Land Management Unit, UNEC for Europe

Irish Respondent and Group Discussion

Mr Aidan Culhane, Director of Housing, Urbeo Residential

 

Topic 3. THE IRISH MODEL OF COST RENTAL AND GERMAN AFFORDABLE HOUSING POLICIES AND CHALLENGES

The Irish model of cost rental being introduced

Mr Barry Quinlan, Principal Officer, Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government

German affordable housing policies and challenges

Dr Steffen Wetzstein, Senior Researcher, Brandt School of Public Policy, Germany and

Mr Rolf Müller, Head of Housing and Property, Federal Institute for Research on Building, Urban Affairs and Spatial Development

 

Topic 4. HOW CAN RESEARCH BE USED TO INFORM AFFORDABLE HOUSING POLICIES?

Dr Jaana Nevalainen, Ministerial Advisor, Ministry of the Environment of Finland

Research evidence on housing affordability in Ireland

Mr Conor O’Toole, Senior Researcher, Economic and Social Research Institute

Irish Respondent and Group Discussion

Mr David Silke, Director of Research and Corporate Affairs, Housing Agency

Speaking about the seminar, John O’Connor, CEO, of the Housing Agency said ‘The Housing Agency is a centre of excellence in research to inform policy development. We realise the importance of learning lessons from Europe and sharing these with practitioners and policy makers in Ireland. We are delighted to welcome some of the top names in current European research to our event today’.

The reports by the Housing Agency and Amárach Research are divided into two separate reports.

Report 1 - Drivers of Residential Satisfaction and Aspirations in Ireland 

Report 2 - Irish Residential Satisfaction

The main concern emerging from the data analysed is the issue of affordability and the high number of people, especially renters, experiencing difficulties meeting their monthly housing costs.  Two-third of renters and one-third of those repaying a mortgage said they experienced difficult making payments each month. Other findings from the survey were as follows:

• 92% were either ‘very satisfied’ or ‘satisfied’ with their current home
• Homeowners are almost twice as likely to describe themselves as ‘very satisfied’ with their homes compared to renters
• Homeowners are also more likely to ‘strongly agree’ that they enjoy living in their home – 76% of homeowners compared with 60% of renters
• One in five report that shortage of space is an issue
• 16% of people surveyed find it difficult to cover the costs of maintaining their home
• 16% also find it difficult to keep their homes warm
• Neighbourhood satisfaction levels were high with 48% ‘very satisfied’ and a 43% ‘satisfied’ with the area they live
• Homeowners are more likely than renters to have positive experiences of neighbourhood services such as public transport.
• Geographically it was those living in rural neighbourhoods that were most satisfied with their neighbourhood

 

Satisfaction with your home plays a central role in happiness over the course of people’s lives. For greater accuracy in the survey factors taken into account included the house itself, the neighbourhood and whether the house suited the stage of life each respondent was at.

Speaking about the research David Silke, Director of Research said, “Every day we hear stories about housing issues. Stories about the supply of housing, the affordability of housing, the availability of land or long commutes. But we rarely stop to ask people what they think about their own housing situation, so we wanted to measure satisfaction levels across Ireland.

While satisfaction levels are mainly high, one significant concern coming from this research is affordability, especially for renters, and we need to continue to work to address this”.

This report details 19 case studies of housing for older people across Ireland with varying scales of support services.  It showcases best practice examples of housing projects developed / being developed.  The report includes lessons learned from schemes developed and managed by local authorities, housing associations and by the private sector. 

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