Cork City Council delivering houses at a rate above the state average

Cork City Council was the seventh-best performing local authority in Ireland, and the first in Munster, in the first half of 2026 when it comes to housing delivery. The city council delivered 3.9 houses per 1,000 between January and June of this year – tying it with Wexford County Council.

Cork County Council ranked twelfth overall – and second in Munster - delivering 3.6 houses per 1,000 people.

The figures form part of the Housing Delivery League Table, produced by the Hardware Association of Ireland.

Released twice a year, the analysis includes both new-build homes and previously vacant or derelict properties rejuvenated and returned to residential use.

The rate of delivery was based off population statistics gathered by the Central Statistics Office as part of the 2022 Census.

The state as a whole recorded a delivery of 3.6 houses per 1,000, the same as Cork County Council.

The highest rate of delivery was made by Louth County Council, which recorded 6.6 homes per 1,000 residents.

In second place was Laois with 5.2 per 1,000 residents, and in third was Kildare with 4.6 homes per 1,000 people.

Of the 21 local authorities in Ireland, only nine – including Cork City Council – ranked above the state average. Three local authorities – including Cork County Council – matched the state, while 19 fell below the state rate.

Martin Markey, Chief Executive Officer, HAI said: “While many local authorities are making strong progress, there remains a need for greater consistency and ambition in meeting housing demand.

“For local authorities that are challenged in providing new housing, there is ample scope to provide homes by rejuvenating empty homes and above the shop properties,” he said.

The organisation said the league table is intended to recognise successful delivery, improve transparency and encourage local authority areas to learn from those recording the strong results.

This article was produced with the support of the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme funded by Coimisiún na Meán.