LDA Cost Rental

Affordable homes

What is Cost Rental?

Cost Rental is a new housing tenure that was created under the Affordable Housing Act 2021. It offers a long-term, secure rental option that will contribute to the development of a sustainable housing market in Ireland which provides choice across all tenures. The rent on these units is based on the cost of building, managing, and maintaining the homes.

Cost Rental

Property Size:

If you are interested you should apply for the size property that matches your needs. We will seek not to under- or over-occupy properties. In other words, a 1-bed home will not be allocated to a family of two adults and one child, and a 2-bed home would not be allocated to a single adult. Set out below, are the guidelines we will be following:

One-bed unit – suitable for a single person, or cohabiting couple.

Two-bed unit – suitable for two adults, a cohabiting couple, or cohabiting couple/lone parent with 1 or 2 small children.

Three-bed unit – suitable for three adults or cohabiting couple/lone parent with 2 or more small children.

Four-bed unit - – suitable for four adults, a cohabiting couple/lone parent with 5 or 6 children over the age of 10 of the same sex, a cohabiting couple/lone parent with 3 children over the age of 10 years, or a cohabiting couple/lone parent with 5 or 6 children under the age of 10 of the opposite sex.

Please Note:

We will not consider an application that will lead to over occupation of a property. Over occupation is where more than two children are occupying one bedroom per household or where two children one of whom is aged 10 or more, of opposite sex are sharing a room.

Only one application per household is permitted. Anyone or any household applying multiple times will be disqualified from the process.

LDA Cost Rental

Am I eligible?

You may apply/register your interest on The LDA website and follow the instructions. This is the only method by which to apply/register your interest. Applications cannot be made by post, email or over the phone.

*Terms and conditions for cost rental housing in Ireland are set out in the Affordable Housing Act 2021.

In order to be considered for Cost Rental Housing we will require each applicant to clearly outline how they have reached the Household Net Income calculation with supporting documentation . Affordability is a key criteria and is measured as rent being no more than 35% of your Net Income.

To be eligible for consideration for Cost Rental Housing, you must meet the following criteria:

  •   Your net household income is below €66,000 per annum for Dublin and €59,000 for elsewhere in the country. Applicants will have to prove how they have calculated their net household income.
  •   You are not in receipt of any social housing supports (including Rent Supplement or HAP)
  •   You do not own a property
  •   Your household size matches the size of the property advertised (All members of the household must be living in Ireland at time of applying.
  •   You can afford to pay the cost rent for the home. Please see FAQs below for further information.
  •   Your household has only entered one application for a specific cost rental property
Cost rental icon

How do I apply?

Register your interest in a property

You must first register your interest in one property type and indicate your eligibility, by providing the information requested on the form. Affordability is an important factor and is measured as rent being no more than 35% of your Net Income, this is one of the core eligibility criteria for the scheme and these will be used to initially stream applicants into the lottery process.

Applicants selected at random via lottery

Applicants successful in the lottery will be asked to document their Net Income calculation as part of the information required to move to the next phase. Affordability is based on the rent being no more than 35% of your Net Income. Applicants will also be requested to upload all the required supporting documents, as evidence that they are eligible for Cost Rental Housing and will have 120 hours to complete this process after which time the offer will be revoked and the property offered to the next person drawn from the lottery.

If we have insufficient expressions of interest from applicants who meet the affordability criteria we may open a lottery for applicants in excess of this figure. However they will be asked to provide details of their rent history for the previous two years (that they have paid a similar or higher rent) and to demonstrate they have not defaulted on rent in order to assess their ability to pay a higher percentage of Net Income as rent.

LDA Cost Rental

Current LDA Cost Rental Schemes

LDA Cost Rental

Frequently asked questions

Net household income is calculated by adding together the net income for each household member aged 18 years and over. Net income means that income tax, universal social charge, PRSI and superannuation are deducted from the relevant gross assessable income. Click here for an explanation of payslip terms.

Income that is assessable for the purposes of assessing eligibility for cost rental housing?

  • income from employment including overtime, bonuses and commissions. Overtime payments, commissions and bonuses will be assessable as follows:
  • income from employment including overtime, bonuses and commissions. Overtime payments, commissions and bonuses will be assessable as follows:
    • overtime – generally restricted to a maximum of 10% of basic income, but regular overtime may be taken into account;
    • bonus – restricted to a maximum of 10% of basic income;
    • commission – restricted to a maximum of 30% of basic income, where applicable;
  • income from self-employment;
  • maintenance payments received, subject to criteria set out in the Guidance notes on the Household Means Policy of 30 March 2011
  • income from dividends, capital investments and other similar sources of income;
  • occupational and social welfare pensions, from whatever source, including from abroad, and
  • all income from social insurance and social assistance payments, allowances, and benefits, including Family Income Supplement is assessable, with the exception of the below.

Income from the following sources shall, in all cases, be disregarded for the purposes of assessing income:

  • child benefit or guardian’s payment;

  • exceptional or urgent needs payments;

  • carer’s allowance;

  • scholarships or higher education grants;

  • foster care payments;

  • domiciliary care allowance;

  • allowances/assistance from charities;

  • fuel allowance;

  • mobility allowance;

  • living alone allowance;

  • rent or mortgage interest supplements; and

  • payments under FÁS schemes.

If your name is chosen from the lottery, the following documents will need to be submitted;

  • Proof of ID for each household member, including children

  • Proof of Address

  • Proof of Residency

  • Proof of Income for all members of the household over 18

  • Employer Reference for all members of the household over 18

  • Landlord Reference for all members of the household over 18

  • Bank Statements for all members of the household over 18

Please have these documents ready when you register your interest. If your application is successful, you will have 72 hours to upload your documents and complete the application process. If you do not meet this deadline the offer will be revoked.

  1. Proof of ID (Current Valid Signed Passport/Current Valid Passport Card/Current Valid Travel Document/Current Valid EU/EEA Driving Licence– must contain photograph (Irish Provisional accepted)/Current EU National Identity Card)
  2. Proof of address (Utility Bill e.g. telephone, mobile, gas, electricity, heating, oil, waste collection (where a utility bill is a first bill, a second form of address verification is required)/Correspondence from a Regulated Financial Institution operating in the Republic of Ireland (Insurance / Assurance Co., Bank, Building Society, Credit Union, Credit Card Company)/Correspondence from a Government Department / Body). The applicant’s name and address, consistent with the address used in the application, must be stated on the utility bill or other relevant correspondence.
    All relevant correspondence must be dated within the previous 3 months.
  3. Proof of Residency in the Republic of Ireland. Documents that are eligible as proof of residence are as follows (Documents must me dated within the last 12 months):
    • Employment Details Summary (formerly P60)
    • Statement of Payments/Benefits from Dept. of Social Protection
    • Tenancy agreement if you are renting
    • Bank statements for at least 3 months showing day-to-day transactions or Direct Debits for utility bills
    • An employment letter from your current employer, which includes your name, address and date you commenced work
  4. Proof of income
    • If employed: Employment Details Summary (formerly P60) for the most recently completed tax year
    • Last three months’ payslips
    • Statement of Liability (p21)
    • If self-employed– a minimum of 1 year’s accounts, along with an up-to-date tax balancing statement and preliminary tax receipt.
    • Social Welfare Income – documentary evidence of all social insurance and social assistance payments, allowances and pensions being received by members of the household. As income of household members over 18 is also included in the assessment for qualification, evidence of payments to these household members is also needed.
  5. Employer Reference, dated within the previous 6 weeks.
  6. Landlord Reference, dated within the previous 6 weeks

All cost rental rents are set at a level below the market rents in the area where the scheme is located.

  • Two Bed Duplex – 1,455euro per calendar month
  • Three Bed Duplex – 1,550euro per calendar month

The deposits for each unit type will be one months rent less 50 euro so they are:

  • Deposit Two Bed Duplex – 1,405euro per calendar month
  • Deposit Three Bed Duplex – 1,500euro per calendar month

The apartments are unfurnished to allow residents to furnish them according to their own taste and to provide below market rents. However, the following items are included;

  • White goods (fridge-freezer, dishwasher, oven & hob, microwave, washer-dryer)

  • Roller blinds, with blackout blinds in bedrooms.

  • Flooring – laminate flooring throughout, except bathrooms, which are tiled.

  • All utilities (electricity, internet, telephone, etc.) will need to be set up by the resident

Provided there are no issues with breach of tenancy or rent arrears, after six months in occupation you will have a tenancy of unlimited duration, subject to you complying with your tenancy obligations and the unit continues to meet the needs of you and the people living with you as it relates to the number of bedspaces and the size and make up of the occupants.

These properties are a long-term rental option that offer security of tenure.

Applications are assessed at point of entry. If for example, after you’ve been allocated a property your household income increased above €66,000 inside Dublin and above €59,000 elsewhere in the country you would still be entitled to continue renting the property.

We will carry out an affordability test to ensure your rent charge is not more than 35% of your net household income. In the event that it is higher, we will give you the option to provide evidence that, despite the higher proportion of rent to your net household income, you are in a position to afford the rent. This can be proven by you showing that you have paid the same or a higher monthly rent payment, without default, for the previous two years.

The lottery system will be run once the advertising of the properties has ceased. This is operated by an external agency with a full audit trail for transparency. The lottery will create, at random, a list of all applicants and we will approach applicants from the top of the list.

If your name is chosen from the lottery, you will hear from us within 10 working days after the closing date for applications.

Yes, unsuccessful applicants will be informed within 20 days of the application closing date.

No, we will not be maintaining a waiting list for cost rental housing across multiple schemes. You will be able to apply again when further schemes are advertised.

We do not allow pets due to the impact they can have on other residents in the development.

Yes, there will. Keep an eye on our website for further details.

Please include a letter clearly outlining how you have reached your Household ‘Net Income’ calculation with supporting documentation. Income for all members of the household over 18 should be included.

Proof of income documents required:

  • If employed: Employment Details Summary (formerly P60) for the most recently completed tax year
  • Last three months’ payslips
  • Statement of Liability (p21)
  • If self-employed– a minimum of 1 year’s accounts, along with an up-to-date tax balancing statement and preliminary tax receipt.
  • Social Welfare Income – documentary evidence of all social insurance and social assistance payments, allowances and pensions being received by members of the household. As income of household members over 18 is also included in the assessment for qualification, evidence of payments to these household members is also needed.