Approved Housing Bodies Regulatory Authority publishes Annual Report for 2024
The Approved Housing Bodies Regulatory Authority (AHBRA) has today published its Annual Report 2024, outlining a year of extensive regulatory oversight, data analysis and engagement across Ireland’s Approved Housing Body (AHB) sector.
In 2024, AHBRA expanded its oversight activity through 33 statutory assessments, management of 56 Notifiable Events and six Concerns, and completion of its third Annual Monitoring Programme, through which detailed information was received from individual AHBs. These activities, together with hundreds of interactions with AHBs and close collaboration with key stakeholders including the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, local authorities, funders and other regulators, provided AHBRA with deeper insight into sector risks, performance and development needs.
AHBRA’s regulatory oversight, at the end of 2024, spanned 438 registered AHBs, which collectively manage approximately 68,000 homes, with an annual income of €1.95 billion and assets of nearly €10 billion.
Highlights of AHBRA’s 2024 Activity
- 33 statutory assessments were completed, covering 43% of all dwellings in the sector.
- 56 Notifiable Events and six Concerns managed and evaluated.
- Detailed information on operations and performance received from AHBs through the Annual Monitoring Programme.
- Continued collaboration with the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, local authorities, funders and other regulatory bodies to enhance sector-wide assurance.
- First statutory investigation completed, and Inspectors’ report published.
- New AHBRA Statement of Strategy 2025–2028 published.
- Delivery of education and guidance supports, including educational webinars for AHBs on AHBRA’s regulatory programmes and processes.
- Engagement with Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage to progress key amendments to the Housing (Regulation of Approved Housing Bodies) Act 2019.
Overall, AHBRA continued to build and develop its own capacity as a modern effective regulator enhancing its systems expertise and data capabilities to deliver high quality proportionate regulation.
Insights from AHBRA’s Assessment Programme
Assessments are a cornerstone of AHBRA’s regulatory work — they play a vital role in providing assurance on how AHBs are governed and managed, helping to safeguard tenants, public investment and the long-term sustainability of the sector.
The Assessment Programme is conducted on a continuous basis throughout the year. It is carried out through a risk-based framework where an AHB is selected and required to submit information. Once an assessment is complete AHBRA issues an Assessment Report which contains its findings, recommendations and an overall regulatory outcome. Regulatory outcomes are published on AHBRA’s website.
Of the 33 AHBs assessed during 2024:
- 45% of AHBs were compliant with some improvements required,
- 40% were working towards compliance,
- 15% required formal compliance plans.
Fergal O’Leary, CEO of AHBRA, said: “The findings from all of our engagement with AHBs in 2024 give us a clear view of the sector’s strengths and challenges, built on the detailed information received through monitoring and the evidence gathered from our assessments and day-to-day engagement. We can see where systems are working well, where additional attention is required, and where more structure and planning will make the greatest difference.
Continued attention is required in the following areas:
- Governance and Risk: Many AHBs — particularly smaller organisations — would benefit from more structured approaches to identifying and managing organisational risks. Building risk management into regular planning and reporting will help strengthen decision-making and oversight.
- Finance: For growing AHBs, financial risk management and stress testing should continue to be enhanced to underpin growth and resilience. Smaller AHBs can further improve budgeting and financial reporting, and AHBRA will continue to encourage this through training and guidance.
- Property and Asset Management: Completing stock condition surveys and developing more robust repair and maintenance plans remain important priorities for effective asset management.
- Tenancy Management: AHBs are encouraged to continue strengthening tenant engagement and transparency, particularly in relation to allocation policies, complaints, rent arrears and voids reporting”.
AHBRA will continue to work with the sector in 2025 and beyond to address these areas. The organisation is undertaking a comprehensive review of its guidance materials, expanding training and education programmes, and developing targeted strategies to enable compliance across different categories of AHBs.
Fergal O’Leary concluded:
“This report demonstrates the breadth of AHBRA’s oversight and the depth of our engagement across the sector. Our approach is informed by data – the hundreds of interactions we have with AHBs every year shape our understanding of the risks they face and, ensure our approach is practical and proportionate.
The sector continues to make progress, but challenges persist. As the AHB sector continues to expand in scale and complexity, AHBRA’s focus will remain on ensuring that growth is underpinned by strong governance, sound financial management and effective risk oversight.”