You can apply for this scheme

• If you are on the housing waiting list.
• If you are a tenant or tenant/purchaser who wants to move to a privately owned house and to return your present house to Waterford County Council.
• If you have been a tenant for more than one year in a house provided by a voluntary housing body and now want to move to a privately owned house and return your present house to the housing body.

Improvement works can be carried out if the house is

• Owned by the applicant
• Where the house is defective or overcrowded for the needs of the applicant, or 
• Owned by a relative of the applicant, where the house is defective or would be overcrowded when the applicant moves into the house 
• Work involved would eliminate defects in the house or to provide additional accommodation. This would enable a person not residing in the house who is approved for local authority housing to move in. 
• The cost limit of works, which may be carried out to any house, without the prior approval of the Department, is €63,500

The local authority will pay the full cost of the works carried out to the house. You will be expected to pay a reasonable weekly or monthly charge for these costs for a maximum of 15 years. The charge is calculated on the basis of your income and the cost of works carried out. It is related to your ability to pay and so may vary throughout the 15 years.
You can sell the house at any time. You must make a repayment to the authority if the house is sold before the total repayments equals the cost of the works or within 15 years of the works being carried out (whichever is the sooner). The amount of repayment is 1/15th of the cost of the work for each year between the date of the house sale and the date of 15 years from completion of the work.