Ireland’s housing pipeline undermined by late-stage procurement
Early engagement failures, rising costs and policy changes slowing delivery across approved housing bodies
18 April 2026 | 📧 editor@ipropertyradio.com
Ireland’s housing delivery pipeline is being constrained by late-stage procurement practices, with industry figures warning that projects are being designed and priced before key delivery partners are engaged.
That was the central message from a recent episode of Breaking Ground on iPropertyRadio, where host Carol Tallon was joined by Denise Doorley, Development Manager at approved housing body Oaklee, Pat Kirwan of Reddy Architects & Urbanism and President of the European Association for Industriallised Construction, and Nick Haughton, Director at Sapphire Balconies and member of the UK Construction Industry Task Force.
Doorley said that while Oaklee currently manages approximately 3,000 homes and is targeting the onboarding of a further 700 units this year, delivery is increasingly exposed to risk where housing bodies are brought into projects too late.
“We often come in too late in the day,” she said, referring to the dominant turnkey model. “Developers have engaged a contractor, agreed a price, and we just have to purchase turnkey, which is difficult from a viability point of view.”
She added that earlier involvement would allow housing bodies to influence design, construction methods and long-term management considerations, with direct cost implications over the lifecycle of schemes.
The comments come as housing delivery continues to face multiple pressures. Recent data from the CSO shows residential property prices rose by 7.0% in the 12 months to January 2026, while construction cost inflation remains volatile, with recent increases linked to global energy market disruption.
Doorley confirmed that cost inflation is already impacting pipeline certainty. “We had a developer come to us just recently with a list of supplier cost increases even in the last three weeks,” she said, noting that not all projects in Oaklee’s pipeline have secured funding or reached contract stage.
Policy changes have also contributed to delays. Doorley said that revised apartment design standards over the past 15 months led to projects being paused or reassessed. “An awful lot of projects were delayed… contracts fell out, so things didn’t get delivered,” she said.
From a design and policy perspective, Pat Kirwan said procurement reform is now critical to unlocking delivery. He confirmed that MMC Ireland, working with the RIAI, SCSI, Engineers Ireland and the Construction Industry Federation’s Smart Off-site Association, is finalising a report examining how social and affordable housing is procured in Ireland.
“We need to innovate in how we procure projects,” Kirwan said. “At the moment, it’s the most economically advantageous tender that wins. If your design efficiencies don’t translate into cost savings, you won’t win the project.”
He added that industry feedback is unequivocal. “One hundred percent of respondents involved directly in the procurement of social housing said they need to be involved earlier in the process.”
Kirwan also pointed to international comparisons, noting that Sweden has achieved higher adoption of offsite construction not through mandates, but by embedding carbon, programme and performance requirements into procurement, effectively forcing more efficient delivery methods.
The discussion also highlighted the growing European dimension. Kirwan, recently appointed President of the European Association for Industrialized Construction, said the organisation is engaging with the European Commission on affordable housing strategy, including how offsite manufacturing and cross-border supply chains can support delivery targets.
Meanwhile, supply chain pressures remain a concern. Nick Haughton of Sapphire Balconies said volatility in material costs and financial stress among suppliers could have knock-on effects across projects.
“Companies which are growing fast and using vulnerable materials might be financially stressed at the moment,” he said. “Contractors and developers should be looking at the health of their supply chain.”
Haughton also pointed to inefficiencies in design, particularly facade complexity, as a contributor to rising costs. He said that greater standardisation of structural elements, combined with controlled design flexibility, could reduce both cost and embodied carbon.
Across the discussion, a consistent theme emerged: without earlier collaboration between clients, designers, manufacturers and contractors, Ireland risks continuing delays and cost overruns in housing delivery.
As Doorley put it, “We’re not just building homes, we’re managing them over their lifetime. That’s why early engagement matters.”
Listen back: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3bwMnew08d10WK2bV2g6GS?si=iijcwb-_QGyiBI_m60fQSQ
Watch back: https://youtu.be/FOcp0stNldc?si=VkNHGkJ04EVm8_x9
