"Croí Cónaithe" is the name of two separate government housing funds, and they work completely differently. The Croí Cónaithe Towns Fund is the one most people mean: it pays homeowners up to €50,000 to refurbish a vacant property, or up to €70,000 if the property is derelict — better known as the Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant. The Croí Cónaithe Cities Fund is not a grant you can apply for at all — it subsidises developers to build apartments for sale to owner-occupiers in the five cities.
Which Croí Cónaithe Are You Looking For?
| Croí Cónaithe (Towns) | Croí Cónaithe (Cities) | |
|---|---|---|
| Who it's for | Homeowners and buyers of vacant/derelict properties | Property developers with planning permission |
| What it pays | Up to €50,000 (vacant) / €70,000 (derelict) towards refurbishment | Bridges the "viability gap" between apartment build cost and sale price |
| Better known as | Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant | Croí Cónaithe (Cities) Scheme |
| How to apply | Through your local authority's Vacant Homes Officer | You don't — developers submit proposals to The Housing Agency |
| Where | Everywhere — originally towns, now expanded to cities and all rural areas | Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Galway and Waterford metropolitan areas only |
| Administered by | Local authorities / Dept of Housing | The Housing Agency / Dept of Housing |
The Towns Fund: Up to €70,000 for a Vacant Property (The One You Can Apply For)
If you own — or are buying — a property that has been vacant for at least two years and was built before 2008, the Croí Cónaithe Towns Fund pays:
- Up to €50,000 for refurbishing a vacant property
- Up to €70,000 if the property is derelict
- Up to €84,000 for derelict properties on offshore islands
- Plus a €5,000 Conservation Advice Grant for traditional houses
You must live in the property as your principal private residence or rent it out (RTB-registered), and there are clawback rules if you sell within 10 years. The full eligibility rules, work category limits, application process through your local authority, and — importantly — how to stack SEAI energy grants on top of it are all covered in our Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant guide.
The Cities Fund: Why You Can't Apply For It
The Croí Cónaithe (Cities) Scheme works on the supply side. Building apartments in Irish cities often costs more than they can be sold for — the "viability gap" — so they don't get built. The Cities Fund pays developers the difference, on condition that the finished apartments are sold to owner-occupiers only (not to investment funds or for rental).
Per gov.ie and The Housing Agency (both verified 3 June 2026), eligible developments must be:
- Within the metropolitan boundaries of Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Galway or Waterford
- Four storeys or higher, minimum 20 units, at least 35 dwellings per hectare
- Close to public transport
- Approved for planning but not yet started
What it means for you as a buyer: you don't apply for anything, but the scheme's output is apartments that reach the market at prices owner-occupiers can pay. Developments funded under the scheme — by Park Developments, Glenveagh, Cairn Homes, the LDA and others — are being delivered through 2026 and 2027 in Dublin and Cork. They're sold through the developers' normal sales channels; the subsidy is invisible to the buyer beyond the price.
Frequently Asked Questions
Croí Cónaithe is the name of two government housing funds. The one most people mean — the Towns Fund — is the Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant: up to €50,000 for refurbishing a vacant property or €70,000 for a derelict one, applied for through your local authority. The Cities Fund is separate: it subsidises developers to build owner-occupier apartments in the five cities and is not something individuals apply for.
Up to €50,000 for a vacant property and up to €70,000 for a derelict property (up to €60,000 and €84,000 respectively on offshore islands), plus a €5,000 Conservation Advice Grant for traditional houses. The property must have been vacant for at least 2 years and built before 2008, and you must live in it or rent it out. SEAI energy grants can be claimed on top for energy upgrade works.
Not as an individual. The Cities scheme is a fund for property developers — it bridges the gap between what apartments cost to build and what they sell for, on condition the apartments are sold to owner-occupiers. Developers apply to The Housing Agency through eTenders. As a home buyer, you benefit indirectly: the funded apartments (in Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Galway and Waterford) are sold through normal sales channels at owner-occupier prices.
Yes — the Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant is funded by the Croí Cónaithe (Towns) Fund, so the two names refer to the same scheme. It was originally limited to towns but has been expanded to cover cities and all rural areas. "Croí Cónaithe" is the fund; "Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant" is the grant the fund pays for.
Published: 3 June 2026. Author: Neil Russell. Towns Fund details verified against citizensinformation.ie (page edited 9 April 2026, fetched 2 June 2026) — see the full vacant property grant guide for sources. Cities Fund details verified against gov.ie and housingagency.ie, fetched 3 June 2026.