Guide to Housing Options Available

The Housing Department aims to facilitate the provision of suitable, good quality and cost-effective accommodation and housing support.

What is Social Housing Support?
Housing support can be provided in a number of ways:

  • Rented tenancies in Kerry County Council owned properties;
  • Sourcing social housing properties from the private sector through schemes such as the:
  • Rental Accommodation Scheme (RAS)
  • Social Housing Leasing
  • Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) scheme;
  • Allocations to accommodation provided by approved housing bodies (AHBs). Approved housing bodies are independent, non-profit making organisations that provide rented housing on a similar basis to the County Council;
  • Provision of specific accommodation for homeless people, older people and Travellers;
  • Transfer from existing Local Authority Accommodation;
  • Extension to an existing Local Authority House to meet accommodation needs- (Only in exceptional circumstances)


Guide to Housing Options available through Local Authorities


Kerry County Council’s Housing Application Form
The Housing Applications Unit deals with the provision of Social housing support to people who have been assessed under the Council’s Allocation Scheme and are deemed eligible. Eligible applicants are placed on the Council’s housing list in order of date of application and progress on a ‘Time on List’ basis i.e. the next applicant on the list is allocated the next available house.

In order to be assessed to see if you are qualified to access social housing support, an Application Form for Social Housing along with supporting documentation must be completed and submitted and then you will be assessed based on your current circumstances.

How do I apply?
The Housing Applications Unit deals with the provision of housing to people who have been assessed under the Council’s Allocation Scheme and are deemed eligible for social housing support. Eligible applicants are placed on the Council’s housing list in order of date of application and progress on a ‘Time on List’ basis i.e. the next applicant on the list is allocated the next available house.

To see if you are qualified for social housing support, Kerry County Council will assess your eligibility and your housing need. An Application Form for Social Housing along with supporting documentation regarding your current circumstances must be submitted.

The relevant application form is available at the Housing public counter in County Buildings, Rathass, Tralee, which is open from 09.00 to 17:00 Monday to Friday inclusive, or can be downloaded by clicking the link Local Authority Housing Application Form

It is important that the form is read and completed in full, and that all information and documentation required is submitted to Kerry County Council. If an application form is submitted with missing or incomplete information, this will delay your assessment. There is a checklist at the front of the application form to help you to ensure that everything we need to assess your application is submitted, and a guide if you need further assistance can be downloaded by clicking the link: Guide to filling in the Social Housing Application form.

The rules for the assessment are set out in national legislation, and in Kerry County Council’s Allocations Scheme. You can only apply for social housing support to one local authority, usually in the area where you live, or to which you have a local connection. More information on what constitutes a local connection is explained below. Once you have submitted your application, it will be assessed to determine your eligibility and housing need.

Housing Applications Unit
Tel: 066-7183862
Email: [email protected]

How do I show that I have a local connection?

If you are not normally resident in Kerry County Council’s area, you may still be able to submit an application if you, or someone else in your household, can show you have a local connection here, based on any of the circumstances below:

You or anyone in your household has resided in the area for a continuous 5-year period at any time; or

You or anyone in your household are employed in a job in the area concerned or in a job which is located within 15 kilometres of the area; or

You or anyone in your household is in full time education in any university, college, school or other type of educational establishment in the area concerned; or

You or anyone in your household has an enduring physical, sensory, mental health or intellectual impairment is attending a medical or residential establishment in the area concerned that has facilities or services specifically related to such impairment; or

A relative of anyone in your household lives in the area concerned and has lived there for a minimum period of 2 years.

If none of these circumstances apply to your household, you can still apply to Kerry County Council for assessment, but your application will only be accepted at our discretion, based on the urgency of your particular household situation.

Am I eligible for Social Housing Support?

There are number of criteria to determine if you are eligible for social housing support with Kerry County Council, which are listed below:

Age-You must be 18 years of age or older.
Right to live in Ireland– You must have a legal right to remain in the State on a long term basis (if you are from another country).
Income – your net income must not be higher than the limits for your household composition as specified in national legislation.

What are the maximum income limits for County Kerry?

Income is based on the income of all household members. Households must have a net annual income of less than €35,000. Net income is gross pay and or other income less statutory deductions. So for example, if one member of the household is working and others are on social welfare, all such income will be taken into account for the means test. The €35,000 limit can be increased by a further €1,750 per additional household member/earner and an additional €875 per dependent child.  See the following examples:

Household Composition Annual Max Net Income Weekly Max Net Income 
Single Person Household €35,000 €671 
1 adult + 1 child €35,875 €688 
1 adult + 2 children       €36,750 €705 
2 adult + 0 children  €36,750                         €705 
2 adult + 1 child    €37,625                                   €721 
2 adult + 2 children                €38,500                           €738
2 adult + 3 children €39,375 €755
adult + 4 children €40,250                      €772
3 adult + 4 children €42,000 €805


Alternative Accommodation
 – you must not own, or have access, to a house or other property that you could live in.

Local Authority Rent Arrears – if you have previously been a tenant of Kerry County Council or any other local authority and owe rent arrears on your previous property, you may not be considered eligible for a new application.

Kerry County Council will need to check you are eligible based on these criteria before we look at your housing need.

If you are not eligible for social housing support, you will receive a letter from Kerry County Council to confirm this. You will have to explore other options to determine how your housing requirements can be met from your own resources, such as renting a property privately, purchasing a property or adapting your existing accommodation.

If you are eligible, Kerry County Council will next look at your housing need.

What happens next?
A member of the Housing team will first contact you to carry out a detailed assessment based on your application form. Kerry County Council will issue a letter to you confirming the result of your assessment and whether you are qualified for social housing support. If you are qualified, you are added to Kerry County Council’s record of qualified households (also known as the housing waiting list).

You can then access a range of social housing supports, including private sector properties through the Rental Accommodation Scheme (RAS), Social Housing Leasing Schemes or Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) scheme; accommodation provided by approved housing bodies (AHB’s) or a tenancy in a Kerry County Council owned property.

How long will it take to receive an offer of housing?
While Kerry County Council will take into account all of your household’s circumstances when considering your application, unfortunately, there is high demand for social housing support and the Housing Department cannot give applicants a timeframe for the offer of a Kerry County Council property.

The Allocations Scheme provides the means for determining the order of priority to be given in the allocation of dwellings to applicants on the housing waiting list on the basis of the classification of their needs. Within these groups of applicants, priority will be determined based on credit time (i.e. length of time since you were added to the housing waiting list) and individual circumstances.

The length of time it will take to receive an offer of accommodation depends on a number of factors:

Levels of demand for social housing;

Availability of social housing in your area of choice;

How flexible you can be in terms of the type of property and area of the County you would consider;

Information on the Rental Accommodation Scheme, Social Housing Leasing Schemes and Housing Assistance Payment Scheme
Many applicants secure tenancies through the RAS, Leasing and HAP schemes – further information can be found by clicking the links below

Information on RAS
Information on Social Housing Leasing Schemes
Information on HAP

Important Information
It is very important that you keep your housing application up to date, especially if your circumstances change. You need to contact us if:
You move house – please notify Kerry County Council in writing with proof of your new address.
Your household composition changes (e.g. if you want to add a partner or spouse; if you have a new baby) – please complete the Change of Circumstance Form

Your income changes – you change jobs or your income changes for any other reason – please complete the Change of Circumstance Form.

You receive a Summary Social Housing Assessment review form – Kerry County Council is required to complete annual review of demand for social housing support. If you are contacted as part of this process, it is very important that you complete and return the required documents, as failure to do so may lead to your application being closed.

Any other circumstances change which directly impact on your housing need – please complete the Change of Circumstance Form.

Kerry County Council’s Housing Allocation Scheme
The Approved Housing Allocation Scheme is to provide a means of determining the order of priority to be accorded in the allocation of dwellings to:
Persons assessed as being qualified for social housing support (eligibility) in accordance with Section 20 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 2009 (and associated regulations)
Persons transferring from a dwelling, including from a dwelling provided under the Social Housing Leasing Initiative or the Rental Accommodation Scheme (RAS).

Kerry County Councils Social Housing Allocation Scheme

Contact Us

Housing Dept,
Rathass, Tralee,
Co. Kerry
Housing Phone Extensions
Email:[email protected]

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