Government Plans to End Turnkey Social Housing Acquisitions by December 2027
Sunday 25 October 2026
Housing Minister James Browne intends to phase out funding applications for turnkey social housing acquisitions, prompting warnings over future completion rates.
Housing Minister James Browne plans to bring proposals to Cabinet to end funding applications for turnkey social housing purchases from December 2027.
Turnkey acquisitions involve state bodies purchasing newly built, fully completed homes directly from private developers for immediate occupation.
Housing sector representatives across both private and state-backed bodies have raised concerns that the policy shift could lead to a decline in overall completions from 2028 onwards. Industry figures warned that removing the mechanism without adequately resourcing alternative delivery models could also jeopardise the government target of delivering 60,000 homes per year.