People in Mayo who have availed of the Vacant Homes Grant are waiting eight and a half months to receive the grants from Mayo County Council.
That’s according to Castlebar based Fine Gael councillor Donna Sheridan, who has described the delays as simply “ridiculous”.
She says that while the scheme can be very beneficial from the outset for people to renovate a home, the council need to be honest with them from the outset about the payment delays.
The grant provides up to €50,000 for vacant houses and up to €70,000 for derelict properties. 26 grants were paid out in Mayo during the first quarter of the year, which reduced to just seven in the second quarter.
Cllr Sheridan has been outlining her frustrations on this scheme to Midwest Radio’s Rian Bailey:
