Five regional towns added to Living City Initiative to drive regeneration and housing supply
Tax relief expanded to support refurbishment, reuse and over-the-shop living in key urban centres
19 April 2026 | 📧 editor@ipropertyradio.com
Property owners in Athlone, Drogheda, Dundalk, Letterkenny and Sligo can now access targeted tax reliefs following the formal designation of these locations under the Living City Initiative (LCI).
The designation, signed by Tánaiste and Minister for Finance Simon Harris on 17 April, extends the urban regeneration scheme beyond its existing footprint in Dublin, Cork, Galway, Kilkenny, Limerick and Waterford. The move brings five regional towns into scope, with a focus on addressing vacancy, dereliction and underused building stock in central urban areas.
The initiative operates through designated Special Regeneration Areas (SRAs), which have been identified and independently assessed by local authorities. These areas are characterised by high levels of vacancy and a concentration of older buildings with potential for refurbishment and reuse.
Property owners within these SRAs are now eligible to apply for a range of tax reliefs aimed at supporting the conversion and upgrading of residential and commercial properties. The scheme includes income tax relief for owner-occupiers refurbishing properties for their principal residence, as well as accelerated capital allowances for rented residential and commercial developments.
A key policy shift introduced in Budget 2026 is the addition of a specific relief for the conversion of commercial premises into residential units, commonly referred to as “living over the shop”. This measure removes age restrictions for qualifying buildings and is intended to unlock vacant upper floors in retail areas, increasing housing supply while supporting more active town centres.
The Tánaiste said the expansion is focused on “bringing vacant and derelict buildings back into use, increasing the supply of homes, and rebuilding the social and economic fabric of our town centres”. He added that enabling more people to live in central urban locations is critical to restoring vibrancy and reducing vacancy.
Minister for Housing James Browne said the extension aligns with the Government’s housing strategy, Delivering Homes, Building Communities 2025–2030, where tackling vacancy and dereliction is identified as a core objective. He noted that the scheme is already contributing to regeneration in cities and that broadening access will support similar outcomes in regional towns.
Eligibility criteria under the initiative have also been widened, with residential properties built before 1975 now qualifying, compared to the previous 1915 threshold. This change significantly expands the pool of buildings that can be brought back into productive use.
For placemakers and urban practitioners, the extension of the Living City Initiative signals a continued policy shift towards compact growth and reuse of existing building stock. The focus on “over the shop” living in particular reflects a targeted intervention to intensify town centre use, reduce reliance on greenfield development, and support mixed-use regeneration.
The scheme has been extended to run until the end of 2030, providing a medium-term policy framework for investment in town centre renewal and adaptive reuse.
