More than four-in-ten people believe there is a “good chance” loosening of rules around ‘cabin homes’ will help address Ireland’s chronic housing shortage, new research has revealed.

As part of ongoing efforts to tackle the housing crisis, the Irish Government has been considering relaxing planning regulations to make it easier for people to build modular and cabin-style homes in their back gardens.

New research from Peopl Insurance has revealed that over 40% of people believe this approach has real potential, while an additional 30% feel that although it could help, there would be a limit to its positive impact.

In addition, almost six-in-ten homeowners said they would consider building a cabin home in their back garden if planning rules were relaxed.

A modular home is seen in the US state of California in May 2018. Picture by: Citizen of the Planet / Alamy Stock Photo

Commenting on the survey findings, Peopl Insurance spokesperson Dominic Lumsden said: “With the Central Bank recently warning that the Government will fall short of its own housing targets for the next three years, it’s a crisis that will be with this country for some time yet.

“So it’s clear the government needs to think outside the box and come up with some innovative solutions to address housing supply issues.

“The proposal to ease planning restrictions for modular and cabin-style homes in back gardens is just one of several housing solutions under consideration.

“Our research shows that the majority of people would take advantage of this opportunity if regulations were relaxed, indicating strong public support for the changes if implemented.”

Skender's new finished module sample in their Chicago plant, which will start manufacturing modular homes, May 22, 2019. Credit: Abel Uribe/Chicago Tribune/TNS/Alamy Live News

The Peopl Survey highlighted a range of reasons why individuals would consider building modular or cabin-style homes in their back gardens:

• Family Needs: The primary motivation would be to accommodate family members, such as elderly parents or adult children, with 40% of respondents saying they would consider building a unit for this purpose.
• Work Space: More than one-in-four said they would consider constructing a unit for work-related use, such as a home office.
• Rental Income: A further 15% said they would build a cabin-style home to generate rental income.

“With the latest Census figures showing that 440,000 young adults are still living at home with their parents, with that figure up significantly (16%) on 2016, it’s perhaps no surprise that the main reason people would consider building a cabin style home in their garden would be to either house adult children or elderly parents,” Mr Lumsden added.

“This unfortunately is a sign of the times and an indication of how unachievable buying a home has become for so many young people.”

Divides

Renters are more inclined than the national average or homeowners to believe that relaxing the planning rules around modular homes in back gardens would help resolve housing issues.

52% of renters feel this way, compared to the national average of 44% and 40% of homeowners.

Around one-in-three people are “on the fence” about this topic, feeling that such changes may help address housing supply issues “a little – but not by much though”.

More than 21% of respondents believed it would not address Ireland’s housing supply issues, with the majority of these respondents believing that doing so “would probably give rise to other problems”.

Gender & Age

The Peopl survey unveiled some interesting gender and age divides on the topic of cabin style homes in back gardens.

Men are more inclined than women to say they would build a cabin home in their back garden in order to earn rental income (19% versus 11%), while women are more inclined than men to say they’d so for family reasons (42% versus 37%).

More than half of those aged 55 and older said they wouldn’t consider building a cabin-style home in their back garden, compared to only one-in-five 25 to 34 year-olds responding in this manner.

Workers replace a home destroyed by Hurricane Sandy with a modular home as part of the rebuilding efforts after the storm. Sep. 10, 2013 Image: Alamy

“The positive sentiment expressed by the younger age groups towards the proposal to relax planning rules for cabin-style homes is likely a reflection of them being very much on the front line of the housing crisis in their struggles to get onto the property ladder,” Mr Lumsden said.

“The reticence expressed by some of the older age groups meanwhile could also be a reflection of their longer life experience and a recognition that any changes around planning rules for garden extensions would be just one of a number of badly needed solutions for Ireland’s housing crisis.”

Modular student housing is seen at Utrecht University in The Netherlands in March 2010. Picture by: Iain Masterton / Alamy Stock Photo