Mayo County Council has to decide whether to sell six properties bought through CPO or retain them for social housing
Mayo County Council is facing a decision on whether to sell six former TII properties, including a derelict property in Atterish, Westport, or retain them for social housing.
The total cost to taxpayers for the Atterish property, including the original acquisition, buyback, remediation works, and legal fees, comes in at just under €1m.
TII originally acquired the six properties under a compulsory purchase order (CPO) as part of the Westport to Turlough N5 project.
The properties were ultimately unaffected by the development and have since fallen into disrepair.
They were later transferred back to Mayo County Council in a deal that allowed the council to purchase them below market value, on the understanding they would be used for social housing.
TII purchased the house in Atterish in March 2016 for €585,000. It now has a valuation of just €175,000, a decrease of 70pc.
It has been confirmed that this house is currently undergoing remediation works at a cost of €229,435, in addition to €7,500 in legal and administrative fees.
If you take the original CPO price (€585,000), the buyback cost (€175,000), the cost of the remediation works (€229,435), and the administrative fees (€7,500), the total cost to the taxpayer for a single social house works out at approximately €996,935.
Remediation works have also begun on a second property near Castlebar, at a cost of €254,860.
Both expenditures were made following Budget approval from the Department of Housing.
At the latest Mayo County Council meeting, a motion was raised calling on councillors to consider placing the homes on the open market, with any proceeds made being directed toward affordable housing.
In response to the motion made by Cllr Peter Flynn, the council confirmed that, under an agreement with TII, four of the six houses were acquired at prices below TII valuations, averaging €181,666 across all six properties.
The agreement required the homes to be used for social housing for at least five years. It stated that if the properties were sold within that period to anyone other than a council tenant or an Approved Housing Body (AHB), the council must pay TII the difference between the purchase price and TII's valuation.
The agreed prices ranged from €95,000 to €270,000, with the total difference between the prices paid and TII's valuations amounting to €350,000.
In addition to the two homes currently undergoing works, the council is looking to submit a funding proposal to the Department to carry out similar works on a third property for social housing.
The council confirmed that an AHB, promotes inclusive and sustainable housing options for people with a disability, is considering the remaining three properties for people on the housing waiting list, with preparatory work underway for a funding application.
Council officials have said selling the properties would represent a "missed opportunity" to provide secure, long-term social housing, including for families and individuals with disabilities.
In response, Cllr Flynn welcomed the developments being made by the AHB regarding three of the properties, adding that the organisation provides an invaluable service to the county and calling it a great step forward.
"It's the other three I have difficulty with," he said.
"While it does say the average acquisition cost for the council was €180,000, what it doesn't say is – when those houses were acquired by TII originally, they were probably in the average of €500,000 plus, in terms of acquisition,
"Regardless of whether it was TII or Mayo County Council, or any other organisation, it is still the taxpayer that is funding it."
Referring to the Atterish house currently being refurbished, Cllr Flynn said it was hard to comprehend how over €200,000 was needed to refurbish a house that had been occupied until 2016.
He continued: "When that house is completed, it will have a market value somewhere in the region of €600,000,
"Working people are already struggling to understand how someone earning €35,000 or above is excluded from any Government or council support in terms of housing,
"Handing over housing in the value of €600,000 to social housing is going to be a further red flag to a bull for people who are struggling to get by day by day."
His proposal to place the three properties not being used by the AHB on the open market, with any proceeds reinvested in repairing or acquiring new social houses, was seconded by Cllr Ger Deere.
Cllr Deere warned that the council must act carefully when dealing with the three properties.
"We need to start working better with TII. It's a disgrace what happened," he said, "Three of [the houses] I know, definitely did not need to be CPO'd at all,
"I hope there's a lesson learnt there for everyone, TII and MCC."
Before the motion was passed, Chief Executive Kevin Kelly reminded councillors that selling the properties would require Mayo County Council to pay the full market value to TII.
Mr Kelly told the council that selling the properties could damage the council's relationship with TII, and reminded them that if the sale price does not exceed TII's valuation, the council would be required to cover the difference.
Cllr Flynn thanked Mr Kelly for clarifying the situation and proposed deferring his motion until the next meeting.
He also requested a copy of the contract between Mayo County Council and TII, which specifies the requirement to pay the full market value of the houses, to ensure clarity.
This article has been funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.