City council inspected just 10% of new-builds last year

Cork City Council inspected less than 10% of all new buildings last year in its catchment area, well below the minimum target set by the Government.

It was one of just two local authorities that did not did not meet the minimum 12-15% of inspections required by the Government’s code of practice.

Just 9.5% of new buildings were inspected in Cork city in 2025, compared to 83% of buildings in Dublin city, according to a report from an oversight body.

A Cork City Council spokesperson told The Echo that the local authority is very aware of its responsibilities to inspect buildings and takes it very seriously.

“Over the past decade, Cork City Council has experienced unprecedented levels of development, which has raised challenges with regards to the allocation of resources to different tasks associated with new buildings,” they said.

The spokesperson added that a “risk-based inspection regime” is used to maximise resources, and that they hope to increase staffing.

The report, from the National Oversight and Audit Commission, shows that Cork city had the highest number of new building notifications in Ireland last year, at 1,554, followed by Cork county, where 1,379 new buildings were notified.

However, Cork County Council inspected 559 — nearly 40.5% — of its new buildings, while Cork City Council managed just 148, and had the second-lowest inspection rate in Ireland, just ahead of Roscommon.

Cork city’s rate had, in fact, improved when compared to 2024, when it was just 6.8% of new buildings, but there were considerably more new building notifications that year, at 4,444.

The fall in the number of new buildings notified to local authorities between 2024 and 2025 is seen across the board, with a 70% reduction recorded, which Cork County Council put down to a planning development charges waiver introduced by the Government which has led to increased development in 2024.

The commission’s report also looked at inspections of private rented accommodation, as the Government sets an annual target for the inspection of 25% of all private residential tenancies.

In respect of rented properties, the commission found that Cork City Council inspected 8,393 such buildings, around 34% of the total in the area, the fifth-highest inspection rate in Ireland.

Meanwhile, Cork County Council inspected 2,532 privately rented dwellings, just 18% of its total.

A total of 89% of inspected properties in the Cork City Council area and 90% in Cork County Council area were not compliant, meaning nearly 10,000 rental properties in Cork were below legal standards.

Cork City Council conducted 6,097 follow-up re-inspections of properties which had been found non-compliant during the year, while Cork County Council conducted just 276.