‘It’s unreal that it is actually happening’ – Sligo resident’s heartwarming journey from homeless to home owner thanks to GoFundMe appeal

By Philip Rooney, The Sligo Champion

Cian Murtagh knows better than most the realities of being homeless in Ireland. Originally from Co Meath, Cian was in State care until he was 18, after which he became homeless in Dublin and later Cork.

Working during the day and rough sleeping at night, Cian suffered numerous assaults and was robbed on countless occasions. After six months of rough sleeping in Cork the desire to have a place to call his own seemed as though it was becoming more and more unrealistic.

His bleak situation led to dark thoughts which could have had a tragic outcome. Thankfully, the support of the local community in Cork and Limerick helped Cian achieve what he thought was impossible and transformed his life.

Money raised via GoFundMe helped Cian purchase a derelict cottage for €41,000. In reality the cottage consisted of a little more than a few walls and an asbestos roof but with the right help and advice he was ready to transform the derelict old house into his dream home, while at the same time transforming his own life.

Cian’s previous connections to Sligo revolved around his travels around the country as he recalled, “I did rough sleep outside the bus station a lot when I was passing through Sligo. I love Sligo in general. I used to be homeless and wandered around the whole country, I climbed Benbulben, I slept outside in Strandhill. I ventured all around and I would see it has easily some of the best views in the country. It’s just unreal to be able to actually live here in a very picturesque area.”

It is very hard for a man of my age to imagine having his own house, it’s unreal that it is actually happening

Standing outside his home that is imminently close to being habitable, Cian reflected on the work that has been carried out with a sense of pride but also one of gratuity as he thanked all who have helped him progress his journey to this point.

“You know what it is like, it is very hard for a man of my age to imagine having his own house, it’s unreal that it is actually happening.

“We had to try and organise a septic tank because there was no septic tank here. Unfortunately when it was purchased it had an asbestos roof so we had to get that removed. We’ve had so much generosity from companies and people all around the country, particularly from here in Sligo who saw a cause and wanted to help out. There’s a good sense of community, it half restored my faith in the average day to day Irish person.”

Elaborating on the sense of goodwill that has been extended to him, Cian commented, “Everybody has been great. I have no shower or power so some of the neighbours here have allowed me to charge my phone or go in and have a shower every now and again. It’s a proper sense of community and I feel very accepted.

With the house completion in sight and the day drawing ever closer to being able to move into his own home, Cian acknowledged the enormity of the achievement has been incredible to say the least.

“It’s shocking. In a week or two we will have power and that’s major. I have been in a caravan for a few years now and before that I was on the streets for 10 years. The idea of having access to power – inside nice and warm, getting the auld air fryer ready to go, having a fridge and a freezer, it’s proper middle class now!”

I have been in a caravan for a few years now and before that I was on the streets for 10 years. The idea of having access to power!

Cian’s project will be the subject of an upcoming RTE 1 programme Build Your own Home which shows what can be done with a lot of hard work and the support of an entire community.

The presenter of Build your own Home, Harrison Gardner recalled first hearing about Cian’s story in a newspaper article in The Sligo Champion and felt he may be able to help.

The Australian eco-builder and sustainability designer, who believes that anyone can learn how to build, recalled, “I was so touched and inspired by this alternative way of creating housing. I really believe there is no one way to get a house in Ireland, you have got to be creative and I was really impressed so I reached out to see how we could help and how we could support Cian with this goal.

Recalling his first impressions when he laid eyes on Cian’s cottage, Harison recalled, “Honestly, it was a typical derelict, fairly abandoned cottage when we first got it. Someone had attempted to do some work on it at some stage. There were floors ripped up, there were holes in the walls, there was dirt floors in part of the cottage. It was very derelict. It had an asbestos roof. It needed basically to be stripped back to its bare bones because the original stone that was there before, that was the only thing you could trust in the whole building and then built up again from that point.

"That’s what we have done and we tried to really respect the old building that was there before but also bring it up to modern living standards making it warm. It has underfloor heating, it is running off a heat pump, we’ve got solar which is off-setting Cian’s electricity bills and hopefully giving Cian a zero cost home to live in for the future.”

While Cian’s story is unique in many ways, there are various aspects that are replicated throughout the country, as Harrison explained.

“We follow people’s journeys in creating their own home and every single person that we feature on the show has realised that the home they need, the home they want to create, they can’t afford that and they need to find a different way to do it. We are here to encourage them, to give them tips, to give them advice, teach them how to use tools, teach them how the system works and help them create for the budget that they actually have.

“This project is no different we just tapped into a whole community to make this one happen. Cian’s story isn’t so different from the family with a newborn who need to upgrade their house as well. The housing crisis is so overwhelming and people feel so lost in it and everyone is trying to find an alternative path to get there. The show is meant to be really achievable, it is not meant to be aspirational. It is not meant to be, here is your dream home and if you go three times over budget who cares, that is not this show. We’re here to show people what you can do if you are willing to roll your sleeves up and get your hands dirty.”

The man responsible for designing how the finished cottage would look, Declan McCabe, McCabe Architects, revealed the amount of work involved in such a project can be deceptive.

The housing crisis is so overwhelming and people feel so lost in it and everyone is trying to find an alternative path to get there

“The guys started the project probably thinking it wasn’t as big a job, that they were going to do a bit of a paint job and tidy it up. With these old building, once you get into them and they started deconstructing and taking it apart very soon it grew arms and legs in so far as there was a lot of structural work that had to be done.

“With any of these old buildings, in order to give them another 100 years, at some stage in their life you have to give them a proper overhaul. It wasn’t daunting, we have done it many times but essentially the task here was to take an old house with big, thick stone walls but bring it up to modern standards.

"Essentially what we had to do is plug a new house within the old walls and keep it airtight. By the time we put in our heat recovery systems and an air to water system to run the heat pump it was very efficient. We have it designed now and it is pretty much up and running as an A1 rated home, that’s the new A1 rated home plugged into the old 150 year old stone walls of what was there.

"We kept it as compact as we could. It’s just for Cian and the primary objective was to have a cosy, warm home that he could have shelter and solace in and that is what we have done.”

It’s so nice to know that Cian has got somewhere warm to move into and he doesn’t have to worry about his basic needs of survival

With generous grants available for the refurbishment of old buildings, Declan believes such projects should be more commonplace nationwide.

“Good planning policy is to reuse old or existing housing stock that we have rather than just forgetting about old buildings like these and building a brand new house in the field next door. If everyone did that, I mean, that is not sustainable. There is a great incentive at the moment with the grants available for these properties and Cian has availed of that through the vacant property grant through the County Council and the SEAI grant to upgrade the house to bring it up to the A1 standard.

"Those grants helped to realise the project because it was a huge step in getting the funds, otherwise it was more fundraising. I'd love to see more of this happening, not just in Sligo but right across the country, there are so many beautiful old properties like this. Albeit the design is very simple and modest, we really wanted to keep the metal roof just like you would have seen back in the day. We put the the lime render back on the walls and put traditional windows in.

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"I suppose we are trying to be as respectful as we can to the heritage rather than ignoring the fact that we had an old, historic building and make it look like a new house. It’s modern and it is fresh inside but the outside is still the same old building that was there, albeit it is structurally sound and it is well presented.

Looking to the future, Harrison is understandably proud of the work that has gone into this project to date and is especially upbeat when talking about the transformative impact the new home will have on Cian’s life.

“It’s so nice to know that Cian has got somewhere warm to move into and he doesn’t have to worry about his basic needs of survival, he is going to have somewhere to cook, somewhere to clean. Cian can go on with the rest of his life. He can go on and get the education that he wants to be getting, go and get a job and start to do those other things knowing that he has got this base to work from, it’s all about the foundations.”

Cian’s dream is very nearly a reality but there is still some work to do and organisers are asking that if anyone would still like to help, the GoFundMe page remains open.

“We still need a little bit of support, we still need to get it over the line but we are so close now you can almost feel how much it is a home and how enclosed it is,” Harrison said.

The fundraiser can be found by visiting gofundme.com and searching for ‘Building Cian’s future’.

The new season of ‘Build your own Home’ begins on Wednesday, October 1 at 9.35pm on RTE 1.

The episode featuring Cian and his new home will be broadcast on Wednesday, October 29, at 9.35pm on RTE 1.