12/12/2003
Archived item. This item is published here for historical reasons. The information below may be out of date.
Irish National Survey of Housing Quality 2001 2002 launched
Mr Noel Ahern T.D., Minister for Housing and Urban Renewal, today (11 December 2003) launched the Irish National Survey of Housing Quality 2001-2002.
The survey provides an assessment of the current condition of the national housing stock based on a survey of a representative sample of 40,000 householders and assesses progress since the last survey was undertaken in 1990. The large sample provides an overview of the housing situation with regard to housing quality at a national level and allows for the provision of statistics at county level.
The survey is representative of all tenures - privately owned, privately rented, local authority, renting in the voluntary and co-operative sector and rent-free and covers various types of accommodation - houses, apartments etc. The report examines a broad range of housing issues, of which the main ones are quality of dwelling, dwelling size and rooms available, the level of satisfaction of the householder with the dwelling, services and utilities, affordability and energy efficiency.
"I'm pleased to announce that the Survey results show that the vast majority of households surveyed are satisfied with the general condition of their accommodation, with their area and neighbourhood and with running costs" the Minister said. "Significant progress has clearly been achieved since the last survey was carried out in 1990. This progress is undoubtedly linked to the significant economic development of recent years in which my Government has played a substantial role and is demonstrated by some of the key results of the survey. For example, the fact that 43% of our housing stock was built since 1980 is clearly linked to the record housing output being achieved in recent years and is also a good indicator that a significant number of households are benefiting from improved housing quality."
Detailed information was also obtained on housing costs and affordability and the survey results show that over ninety per cent of households who are purchasing or renting their accommodation spend less than one third of their household income on rent or mortgage payments.
The Minister also stated that "the results of this survey and the categorisation of the results into different groupings such as tenure, income and household composition will assist the formulation of further policies by my Department and by the Local Authorities to meet the challenges ahead in responding to the housing needs of a rapidly expanding and changing population".