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Cork City Council is seeking to increase awareness around the availability of specially designed homes for older people who would like to ‘rightsize’ from properties that are no longer suitable for their needs.

Cork City Council is to the forefront in the delivery of rightsizing options for older persons, with the ongoing development of age-friendly housing schemes.  

‘Rightsizing’ housing schemes have been established for people who find their homes too big for their current needs or their housing need has changed on medical or compassionate grounds.

The scheme is open to private homeowners and to people living in social housing as their move to ‘rightsized’ homes, frees up privately- owned homes and social housing to younger families seeking housing. 

At present, ‘rightsized’ homes are available to people, aged over 60, in Blackrock, Douglas and Bishopstown with further schemes being planned across the city.

• Hawkes Road, Bishopstown 24 homes (CCC scheme managed by Tuath Housing)
• Springville House, Old Blackrock Road 35 homes (Tuath Housing development)
• Sunview, South Douglas Road 25 homes (CCC scheme managed by Tuath Housing)
• Arus Mhuire, Blackrock 30 homes (CCC scheme managed by Tuath Housing)

Across the city, there are more schemes within the portfolio of properties owned by Cork City Council and the approved housing body (AHB) sector which are designed to accommodate older persons allowing for significant choice of location. 

Cork City Council Senior Executive Officer, Alison O’Rourke said:  

Rightsizing frees up housing for younger families, it supports our sustainability goals as these projects are often built at formerly derelict or vacant sites, it offers quality warm, safe and comfortable housing with a high BER rating to older people –  thereby supporting climate action – and it a supports age friendly living. This novel scheme makes sense and supports national policy on a number of levels.

Notes

Private home owners:

The scheme is open to private home-owners in Cork City where the council can acquire their former homes, subject to eligibility criteria. The home owner may want to move as their home is too big, too challenging to maintain, is unfit accommodation or they may need to move on medical grounds.

The homeowners can ask the Council to purchase their home in return for a lifelong tenancy in a dwelling aimed at older people. The prospective ‘rightsizer’ is also requested to make a financial contribution to the Council under the terms of the Financial Contribution Scheme.

Social housing tenants:

Cork City Council also aims to actively promote ‘rightsizing’ of its own rented stock. If the tenant(s) are over 60 years of age, with no dependants living at home, and find their house is too big for their needs or their housing need has changed for medical or compassionate reasons, they may be eligible for the “rightsizing Ssheme”, where Cork City Council will arrange to transfer them to a smaller, more suitable dwelling in the City.

For further details please see https://www.corkcity.ie/!4B7O5D