More than 180 homes across larger residential developments in County Roscommon have live planning permission but have yet to record a matched commencement notice, according to an analysis of national planning and building-control data.
The figures provide a snapshot of the county’s pipeline of permitted housing which has not yet progressed to a formally recorded construction start.
The analysis identified 507 homes across 18 developments of ten or more residential units which have received planning permission in County Roscommon since 2017.
Of those, commencement notices have been matched to 264 homes, representing approximately 52 per cent of the total.
A further 182 homes currently have live planning permission but no matched commencement.
Fourteen of these are associated with a permission due to lapse within the next 12 months, while a further 61 units are associated with permissions recorded as having already lapsed.
The largest live permission without a matched commencement is for 79 homes at Monksland, where permission was granted in October 2023.
The data also identifies permissions without a recorded start for 27 homes at Esker Lawns, 26 homes at Ballyleague and a separate 14-home development at Ballyleague.
A 12-home development at Ardsallagh Beg and ten homes at Millstream are also among the live permissions without a matched commencement.
A 14-home development at Roosky, which received permission in June 2022, is listed as having no matched commencement and as being due to lapse within the next year.
However, the figures require some qualification.
The analysis relates only to developments containing ten or more homes and does not therefore represent the county’s entire housing pipeline.
It is based on matching planning permissions recorded in the National Planning Application Database and An Coimisiún Pleanála records with commencement notices submitted through the Building Control Management System.
A commencement notice is the formal notification that building work is due to begin and is normally submitted between 14 and 28 days before work starts.
Large developments can also be commenced in individual phases rather than as one project.
The data therefore measures whether a formal commencement can be matched to a planning permission rather than whether every permitted home has physically been completed.
The figures nevertheless highlight the difference between the number of homes passing through the planning system and the number progressing towards construction.
Separate CSO figures published last week showed that 37 houses received planning permission in County Roscommon during the second quarter of 2026, the second-lowest number recorded among counties nationally.
The latest figures come as Roscommon County Council is also proposing major changes to its County Development Plan to increase the amount of housing that can be accommodated across the county’s settlements.
