A total of 379 people in Kerry have applied for funding under the Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant - but only two of the applicants approved, have drawn down the money so far.
That's according to an investigation carried out by the Irish Independent.
The figures also show that nationally, just one in fifty grants have been paid out.
The Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant was introduced by the Department of Housing in 2022, and offers grants of up to €70,000 to refurbish vacant and derelict homes.
It was primarily a measure by Government to revamp old houses in towns and villages in rural Ireland.
It can also be used to renovate vacant and derelict properties that have not been used as residential properties before.
This only applies if these non-residential properties were previously used for commercial or public use, and now have the correct planning permission.
Figures obtained by the Irish Independent show that while 379 parties applied for the grant to Kerry County Council, only 92 were approved.
Furthermore, just two of these successful applicants have drawn down the money from the council.
The Kerry applicants broke down into 68 percent from rural parts of the county and 31 percent from urban areas.
The Department of Housing says applicants have just 13 months to carry out the refurbishment works after grant approval is received.
Local authorities say this may be a contributing factor in the low number of draw downs.
