Roscommon County Council currently has a total housing stock of 1,138 dwellings. The properties are located in towns, villages and rural areas throughout the county.
Assessment of needs
Each Housing Authority is required under section 9 of the Housing Act 1988 to carry out, at intervals not exceeding 3 years, periodic assessments of the need for provision of adequate and suitable housing accommodation for people. In conjunction with this assessment, an assessment of the number of homeless persons in the area is also carried out. The Housing Authority is also required, when carrying out the Assessment of Needs, to make an assessment of the need for residential halting sites for Travellers in their functional areas.
The most recent assessment carried out by Roscommon County Council was on the 31st March 2008. Notice of the carrying out of the assessment was given to adjoining housing authorities, Health Boards, and to Voluntary Bodies. This is to ensure that there is a comprehensive assessment of the housing needs. The Housing Waiting List as at 31st March 2008 totalled 576.
Qualifying for local authority housing
If you think you may qualify, you should apply to your Local Authority, which will take account of factors such as your household size, income, your present accommodation (if any), the condition of that accommodation and any special circumstances, including age, disability, medical circumstances, etc.
If you are accepted as being in need of housing, you are placed on the Councils Housing Waiting List, and will be considered for housing in your area of preference, having regard to the priority of your application. You should bear in mind that your priority on the housing list may go up or down, as your circumstances, and those of other applicants, change.
Local authority housing waiting lists
If you are accepted by the Local Authority as being in need of housing, you are then placed on the Local Authority housing waiting list. Each Local Authority draws up its own rules for deciding order of priority on the waiting list, called the "Schemes of Letting Priorities" (see below).
Scheme of letting priorities
Housing applicants must submit an official application form for housing accommodation. Eligibility is determined following an assessment by the Environmental Health Officer and the Housing Officer. Eligible persons are then placed on the waiting list in the area/town of their choice.
A scheme of letting priorities determines the priority of housing applicants in the allocation of first-time lettings and casual vacancies. The making of a scheme of Letting Priorities is a reserved function under the 1988 Housing Act.
The Scheme of Letting Priorities for Roscommon County Council is as follows:
- Homeless
- Unfit, incapable of repair
- Unfit, capable of repair
- Overcrowded
- Compassionate
- Fit
Local authority housing waiting lists (continued)
You may be able to specify areas where you would like to live, but you should remember that if you choose a popular area, you may wait longer for an offer of housing than if you choose a less popular area.
As houses become available for letting (renting out), they are allocated from the waiting list in order of priority, taking account of all the relevant circumstances. You should remember that your position may go up or down depending on the circumstances of other people on the housing waiting list and as your own circumstances change. In practice, priority is generally given to families and elderly people rather than single people or couples without children.
If you are offered a house you do not want, you can refuse it, but if the Local Authority thinks that you do not have a good reason for refusing the offer of the house, it may reduce your priority on the waiting list, particularly if you refuse more than one offer.
Local Authority housing is unfurnished. If you are offered a Local Authority property and you do not have and cannot afford to buy furniture or appliances, you may be eligible for help from your local Health Service Executive Area. Contact the Community Welfare Officer for information about this.
How to apply
You can obtain an application form for Local Authority housing by:
- Requesting it in person or by post from the Housing Department, Roscommon County Council, The Courthouse, Roscommon.
- Telephoning the Housing Department at 09066 37234/235.
The Application Form cannot be completed and submitted on-line, as it must be checked and stamped by various public agencies, and must be submitted together with all required supporting documentation which is set out on the page entitled "Checklist". If any of this supporting documentation is outstanding, or the Application Form is incomplete, your housing application will be deemed invalid and will be returned to you.
The date of receipt of your application will be the date on which all the required information has been submitted. Once a completed application is received, it will be assessed for eligibility. If the applicant is deemed ineligible, this decision will be notified in writing setting out the reason for same.
All eligible applications are fully assessed by an Environmental Health Officer, who will visit the applicant to fully investigate the circumstances of their application. Once this assessment has been carried out on your housing application, you will be notified in writing. You are required to notify us of any change in your circumstances for example change of address, family size, income, etc., so that we can keep your file up-to-date.