By Locals First Initiative

Northern Ireland is facing an unprecedented housing crisis, with almost 50,000 households currently waiting for a social home and thousands more trapped in temporary accommodation. The latest figures paint a stark picture of growing housing demand, rising homelessness, and increasing pressure on already stretched public services.

At the end of 2025, there were 49,755 households on the Northern Ireland Housing Executive waiting list. Of these, 38,620 households were classified as being in housing stress, meaning they are living in unsuitable, insecure, or overcrowded accommodation and require urgent housing support.

Behind these figures are real people and families who are struggling to secure a stable place to live. For many, the prospect of obtaining permanent social housing remains distant as waiting lists continue to rise year after year.

Homelessness is also increasing at an alarming rate. Between April and September 2025 alone, 8,217 households presented as homeless, while 5,366 households were officially accepted as statutorily homeless. These numbers highlight the growing challenges facing communities across Northern Ireland and the urgent need for action.

At the same time, the number of households relying on temporary accommodation continues to grow. As of October 2025, 5,408 households were living in hotels, bed and breakfasts, hostels, and other forms of emergency accommodation. What was intended to be a short-term safety net has increasingly become a long-term reality for many families.

The Northern Ireland Audit Office has highlighted the dramatic increase in the use of temporary accommodation. The number of households housed in temporary accommodation each night rose from around 1,700 in 2017 to approximately 4,700 in 2023–24, representing a staggering 176 per cent increase in just seven years.

These figures should concern everyone. Access to secure and affordable housing is fundamental to family stability, community wellbeing, and economic prosperity. Yet despite years of warnings, the crisis continues to deepen.

Locals First Initiative believes local councils must accept responsibility for their role in this failure. While housing waiting lists continue to grow and homelessness reaches record levels, millions of pounds of public money have been spent on consultations, strategies, reports, and administrative exercises that have failed to deliver meaningful results for local people.

In our view, this reflects poor management and misplaced priorities. At a time when families are struggling to find secure housing, resources should be directed towards building homes, supporting local communities, and delivering practical solutions—not endless rounds of consultation and bureaucracy.

The evidence is impossible to ignore. Nearly 50,000 households are waiting for social housing, thousands of people are living in temporary accommodation, and homelessness continues to rise. Local people deserve more than promises and paperwork. They deserve action.

Locals First Initiative is calling for greater accountability from councils and decision-makers, a renewed focus on housing delivery, and investment that puts the needs of local residents first. Until that happens, Northern Ireland’s housing crisis will continue to grow, leaving thousands of families without the secure homes they need and deserve.