Housebuilding targets too low to cope with rising population, summit hears

"If we don’t plan for real figures, we’re never going to get there,” said Sherry FitzGerald managing director  Marian Finnegan.

The Government's annual house-building targets are far too low to cope with surging population growth, experts have warned, as new figures show rising house prices are putting home ownership beyond the reach of most people.

Lack of capital and rising costs are damaging the delivery of housing, especially apartment projects which are already “borderline viable”, a summit of the Irish Homebuilders Association (IHBA) was told.