Does Dublin need a new type of housing crisis? Reports suggest it may end up getting one in an effort to solve another aspect of the capital's never-ending residential nightmare.

Dublin City Council's plans to demolish 109 out-of-date residential schemes could be about to create a massive decanting problem as residents of the 6,000 apartments are forced to move elsewhere.

The plan to demolish apartments is intended to resolve probable fire-safety and building quality issues in the blocks, which are more than 40 years old. The cost of refurbishing them would be as high as demolition and rebuilding, council studies suggest.

Now council officials are pondering how to house residents during the massive, decades-long rebuild, with some calling for "innovative thinking" to avoid having to decant thousands of residents into temporary accommodation elsewhere in the city, the Dublin Inquirer reports.

One of the main concerns is not to break up communities. “Innovative building sequencing solutions are available to ensure community stability is maintained during the building programme”, according to papers submitted to the council's Housing Strategic Policy Committee, the Inquirer said.