Easing of planning regulations to allow for larger unattached structures to be built in people’s back gardens are expected to be in place by the end of this year.
Currently homeowners can build a 40-square-metre extension to their property, and a standalone structure of up to 25 sq.m, without planning permission.
However, the Government is proposing to increase the standalone structure size limit to 40 sq.m.
The Department of Housing said an interdepartmental consultation “on exempted development is substantially completed” with submissions being examined.
A public consultation will then take place before regulations are finalised and brought before the Oireachtas.
It is understood the process will be completed this year.
The proposed changes were announced earlier this year and have led to increased interest in demand for modular structures that can be used as homes.
The is evident at the annual PTSB Ideal Home Show, which kicks off in the RDS today.
Every year there is a theme that spikes interest, and this time it is modular housing.
The number of modular exhibitors at the exhibition has increased from two to five.
Advocates believe the flexibility of a modular build makes it an effective housing option, especially given the expected changes to planning regulations.
‘Queries have gone through the roof for living-space units’
Sprout Pod is one of a growing number of companies making modular units.
Managing Director Ciaran Kerr said the business has seen a “big uplift in enquiries looking for more living space.
“Four years ago a lot of the enquiries were about home-office space after Covid because people needed space to work. Now queries have gone through the roof for living-space units.”
Mr Kerr said the units he produces are “very low maintenance” and have a minimum lifespan of 40 years.
He is exhibiting a one-bedroom 25 sq.m unit at the Ideal Home Show, which costs around €55,000. A two-bed he says “will probably cost around €75,000”.
“You can get them in anywhere. We can make them off-site and we can crate them in. If we can’t get access, we can make them as a kit off-site and we can carry them in in segments. So there are loads of options.”
‘It’s ideal for what we need’
Audrey Gaffney, from Trim, Co Meath, is about to renovate her home, and with the proposed planning changes, is now actively considering buying a modular unit to live in with her husband and child while the work is carried out.
“It’s ideal for what we need,” she says, adding that a modular build “also gives us the option of actually being able to uproot it and move it to a different site, or maybe even sell it on”.
Ms Gaffney has planning permission to completely renovate the family bungalow, but trying to get somewhere else “within our locality” to live in the meantime is a challenge.
“We have issues with where we live due to overhead cables, we have a small garden to the front and so getting a mobile home in is going to be a huge issue for us and we have a narrow entrance down into a larger garden.
“But we can actually bring the modular home in and assemble it in the back garden.”
Minister of State for Planning John Cummins has been driving the proposed changes from the Government side.
However, the Government has said it does not see any easing of planning regulations in this manner as a solution to the housing crisis, but rather as an option to enable inter-generational movement between the main house and a smaller home to the rear of a property.
There is also an acknowledgement from officials that such a measure would only be appropriate in certain settings where there is sufficient space.
‘It’s a bit of a sticking plaster approach’
However, despite the potential benefits some are not convinced it is the right move.
Town planner Tom Phillips said “we should be building apartments, and we should be building proper houses.
“It’s a bit of a sticking plaster approach to solving a big issue, but for certain people it would work. It won’t necessarily work in very tight urban areas where people have small back gardens, but where people have larger back gardens, it may work.
“And of course it depends on the size of the unit. Because as it’s currently envisaged, these units will be smaller than what would be acceptable for an apartment, and that doesn’t seem right.”
Mr Phillips also says his issue with the measure is “it’s a bit like the genie out of the bottle that once you start doing it, it’ll be very hard to roll back and you could also have the situation that people could be halfway through building it and then they might change the regulations again – as they did a few years ago with co-living where only two years after they were introduced, the Government decided to ban them. So that is always a worry.”
We need your consent to load this rte-player contentWe use rte-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences
