Grants for Homeowners

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Dublin City Council provides grants to assist with adaptation works which are necessary to allow you to remain living in your home.

Dublin City Council provides grants to assist with adaptation works which are necessary to allow you to remain living in your home. There are three grants available for older people and people with disabilities to help make their home safer and easier to get around.

The grants available are:

Requirements for the grant

The person who the grant is for must:

  1. have the grant application approved before the work starts on the home;
  2. live in the home when the work is completed;
  3. have their tax affairs in order;
  4. have tax clearance from Revenue if the grant is for more than €10,000;
  5. show that the Local Property Tax for the home is in order.

Housing Adaptation Grant for people with a disability

This grant is for people with a physical, sensory, mental health or intellectual disability. It is for big changes you need to make to your home.

What type of home is this grant for?

Your home can qualify for this grant if it is any of the following:

  1. privately owned (you or your family own it);
  2. rented from a landlord with a current tenancy agreement registered with the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) and you have the landlord’s permission to make the changes;
  3. provided by an Approved Housing Body (a list of these can be found at www.housing.gov.ie);
  4. a communal residence – accommodation where people live together in group homes.

What can I use this grant for?

You can use this grant to improve access in your home like adding:

  1. a ramp or other ways to access your home;
  2. grab rails;
  3. bathroom facilities like an accessible shower or a downstairs toilet;
  4. a stair lift;
  5. space for wheelchair access;
  6. an extension (typically for a bedroom and/or bathroom to accommodate a person with a disability).

How much is the grant for?

It depends. The grant covers some of the cost of the work needed, but not all of it. The amount of money you get depends on your household income for the previous tax year. You need to supply this information on this form on page 14. There are some disregards and deductions that can reduce the amount of household income that your local authority takes into account. These are explained on page 8 of the application form.

The most you can get is €30,000 or 95% of the total cost of the work approved by your local authority (whichever is less).

Note: A grant is not available if the household income is more than €60,000, after the disregards and deductions are applied.

If you and the people in your household earn €60,000 or less, after the disregards and deductions are applied, you can read the table below for information on how much of a grant you can get.

 

Yearly household income

Percentage of costs

Maximum grant for homes built more than 12 months ago

Maximum grant for homes built within the last 12 months

Up to €30,000

95%

€30,000

€14,500

€30,001 – €35,000

85%

€25,500

€12,325

€35,001 – €40,000

75%

€22,500

€10,875

€40,001 – €50,000

50%

€15,000

€7,250

€50,001 – €60,000

30%

€9,000

€4,350

Over €60,000

No grant payable

No grant payable

No grant payable

 

What the grant does not cover

It does not cover the VAT cost of the work. You can reclaim (get back) the VAT from Revenue after you have paid for the work (see www.revenue.ie for more information).

 

Example

If your household income for the previous tax year is €45,000 after the disregards and deductions are applied, and your home was built more than a year ago, your grant is 50% of the costs of the work to a limit of €15,000. This means that if the work on the home costs €32,000 excluding VAT, the grant will only cover €15,000 and not €16,000.

You can then reclaim the VAT of €4,320 (13.5% of €32,000) from Revenue.

 

Occupational therapist assessment

An occupational therapist (OT) will need to assess you if you are applying for any of the following:

  1. a big change to the use of a room in your home;
  2. a stair lift;
  3. an extension.

This is to make sure the right work is done in the home to suit your needs

You can get this report from a private occupational therapist. If your grant application is successful, your local authority will pay you up to €250 towards the cost of this assessment as part of the grant.

Mobility Aids Housing Grant

This grant is for older people and/or people with a disability who find it hard to move around their home due to mobility issues.

Your home can qualify for this grant if it is any of the following:

  • privately owned (you or your family own it);
  • rented from a landlord with a current tenancy agreement registered with the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) and you have the landlord’s permission to make the changes;
  • provided by an Approved Housing Body (a list of these can be found at www.housing.gov.ie);
  • a communal residence – accommodation where people live together in group homes.

You can use this grant to improve access in your home like adding:

  • grab rails;
  • a ramp;
  • an accessible shower;
  • a stair lift.

It depends. The most you can get is €6,000 or the total cost of the work approved by your local authority (whichever is less). This grant can cover 100% of the cost of the work, up to a maximum of €6,000.

There are some disregards and deductions that can reduce the amount of household income that your local authority takes into account. These are explained on page 8 of the application form.

Note: A grant is not available if the household income for the previous tax year is more than €30,000 after the disregards and deductions are applied.

It does not not cover the VAT cost of the work. You can reclaim (get back) the VAT from Revenue after you have paid for the work (see www.revenue.ie for more information).

An occupational therapist (OT) will need to assess you if you are applying for a stair lift.

You can get this report from a private occupational therapist. If your grant application is successful, your local authority will pay you up to €250 towards the cost of this assessment as part of the grant.

Housing Aid for Older People Grant

This grant is for people 66 years old or more to do essential repairs, so that they can continue to live in their own home. Sometimes this grant can be paid to people under 66 years old, but only in cases of hardship.

A home that is privately owned where the older person:

  • owns the home; or
  • has a right to live in the home (right of residence) where the work will be done.

You can use this grant to do essential repairs. This could be to:

  • help repair or replace the roof;
  • upgrade the electrical wiring;
  • repair or replace doors and windows;
  • provide central heating (where there is no central heating or it is broken beyond economic repair).

Special requirements for this grant

No medical documents are needed for this grant, as it is based on the condition of your home, and how urgently the repairs are needed. However, if your application is urgent due to a medical condition, you will need to complete the Doctor’s Certificate section of this application form on pages 17-18.

If you need to:

you need to send your local authority …

1 Repair or replace your roof

… a letter from your insurance company stating that the repairs are not covered under your policy.

2 Upgrade the electrical wiring

… a report from an electrician describing the necessary repairs. This electrician must be registered with Safe Electric.

3 Upgrade the existing central heating system

… a report from a heating contractor stating that the existing heating system is beyond economic repair. This means that it is more cost-effective to replace than repair.

 

How much is the grant for?

It depends. The grant covers some of the cost of work needed, but not all of it. The amount of money you get depends on your household income for the previous tax year. You need to supply this information on this form on page 14. There are some disregards and deductions that can reduce the amount of household income that your local authority takes into account. These are explained on page 8 of the application form.

The most you can get is €8,000 or 95% of the total cost of the work approved by your local authority (whichever is less). This grant can go towards the total cost of the work including the VAT.

Note: A grant is not available if the household income is more than €60,000, after the disregards and deductions are applied.

If you and the people in your household earn €60,000 or less, after the disregards and deductions are applied, you can read the table below for information on how much of a grant you can get.

Yearly household income

Percentage of costs

Maximum grant

Up to €30,000

95%

€8,000

€30,001 - €35,000

85%

€6,800

€35,001 - €40,000

75%

€6,000

€40,001 - €50,000

50%

€4,000

€50,001 - €60,000

30%

€2,400

Over €60,000

No grant payable

No grant payable

 

Example

If your household income for the previous tax year is €45,000 after the disregards and deductions are applied, your grant is 50% of the costs of the work to a maximum of

€4,000. This means that if the work on the home costs €10,000 including VAT, the grant will only cover €4,000 and not €5,000.

Contact Details

Telephone Number

01 222 2195

Email Address

[email protected]e