Roscommon County Council is aware that households in the Roscommon area who may have received a notice to quit, which is also referred to as a notice of termination, from their landlord may be worried or unsure of what to do.

Roscommon County Council would like to advise anyone affected of the services that are available to them in these circumstances.

Where a person or household is eligible for social housing:

• We strongly encourage tenants residing in the Roscommon area, who have been issued with a notice of termination, to contact Roscommon County Council as soon as they receive a notice from their landlord. The contact details for Roscommon County Council are provided at the bottom of this page.
• When the tenants contact Roscommon County Council, staff in the Housing Department will take note of the termination date and request you to forward a copy of your Notice of Termination to Housing Section postal address below.
• The Council advise you to contact Threshold, a service provider for private renters to check the validity of the notice issued by your landlord. Threshold can be contacted directly on Freephone 1800 454 454 or via their website www.threshold.ie which contains more information and advice on the validity of your notice.
• The Council’s first response will be to try to prevent homelessness. This includes assessing the person’s position on the social housing list, providing advice on applying for Choice Based Lettings when advertised on local newspaper on 1st week of each month, advising the person on the level of Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) they may be eligible to receive, and, in some cases, assessing if the Council can acquire the dwelling where the tenants reside if it is being offered for sale.
• Placement in emergency accommodation will be a last resort, if no other alternative can be identified subject to availability. For households in emergency accommodation, there will be support to assist them to access more permanent social housing supports in the shortest possible timeframe.

Whilst the Council will, in the context of current circumstances, adopt flexibility in dealing with potential acquisitions of properties with tenants in-situ, any acquisition is subject to appropriate due diligence and checks before any commitment is made to acquire, including, for example, determining that a valid notice of termination is in place, the tenant has a social housing need, the condition and valuation of the property and its suitability for household needs.

Where a person or household is not eligible for social housing:

• The Cost Rental Tenant-in-Situ Scheme may suit your household.
• The Cost Rental Tenant-in-Situ scheme is a new initiative available for tenants who are not eligible for social housing but are at risk of homelessness due to a notice to quit. Local authorities are a first point of contact for this Scheme, but it is managed by the Housing Agency.
• Roscommon County Council can assess and refer households for the Cost Rental Tenant-in-Situ Scheme managed by the Housing Agency and provide advice or direct to appropriate services.
• Under the scheme the Housing Agency can purchase a property and rent it to the tenant. Local authorities will undertake an initial assessment of the tenant’s circumstances and refer details to the Housing Agency for consideration, where the tenant is at risk of homelessness and the Cost Rental Tenant-in-Situ scheme applies.

Local Authority Home Loan Scheme 

• Where a tenant wishes to purchase their home, local authorities can advise and support on the Local Authority Home Loan scheme. We are aware that the Government is examining implementing a ‘right of first refusal’ for tenants to purchase their homes, as well as expanding the First Home shared equity scheme.  Roscommon County Council will be able to provide more information on these when available 

The key contact details are: