Revealed: Rise in social housing refusals in Meath after Choice-Based Letting rollout
A Meath councillor has sought clarity on the scale of social housing refusals in the county following the introduction of the Choice-Based Letting (CBL) system — and newly released figures indicate that a significant number of refusals were linked to the scheme.
At the December meeting of Meath County Council, Fine Gael Councillor Sarah Reilly requested that the Housing Section provide a year-on-year breakdown of refusal rates, differentiated by house size and municipal district, along with a comparison to refusal levels prior to the rollout of CBL.
In its response, the council said that, based on the information “available to hand”, 18 refusals were recorded in 2023, though this only covers the period from 20 September onward and does not distinguish between CBL and non-CBL offers.
The number rose in 2024, when 111 refusals were logged, including 24 linked specifically to CBL allocations.
For 2025, a total of 64 refusals had been recorded up to August 18.
The Housing Section added it is currently reviewing how refusals are recorded and how this data can be “better captured”.
The CBL system, introduced in Meath in 2021, allows applicants to express interest in specific available social housing units rather than waiting to be directly offered a property by the council.
Once a property is advertised, eligible applicants can register interest, and the home is allocated to the highest-priority household that applies.
Refusals of CBL properties are treated the same as refusals under the traditional allocation method.