Shared accommodation for professionals and building higher apartment buildings are among measures being proposed by the Government to address the housing crisis.
Minister for Housing Eoghan Murphy outlined his plans at a conference held by the Irish Planning Institute this morning.
There are up to 100 cranes on construction sites in Dublin today, but the minister said only 10% of those are on residential developments sites.
The minister said he wants that to change with more apartment living in cities.
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He said there has to be changes to planning and development laws to address some of the "ridiculous restrictions" on the efficient use of scarce and expensive building land.
Mr Murphy wants to lift the numerical height caps in the city cores and along key transport corridors.
There needs to be a range of urban solutions including more studios, shared apartments and family units, he said.
He is proposing shared accommodation models to bridge the gap between student accommodation and apartments.
Professionals would have their own en suite bedroom but would have to share a communal kitchen and living area.
This type of accommodation, he said, is working successfully in other countries for example "the Collective" in London.
His plans also include the removal of a mandatory requirement for parking within 1km of a DART, Luas, urban rail link and quality bus corridors.
A small working group has been established by the Government to bring forward the proposals to broaden existing 2015 statutory guidelines on apartments by the end of November.
The Government is also said to be considering new measures to increase the supply of build-to-rent and shared accommodation.
The group is due to conclude its report by the end of next month.
The Minister of State with special responsibility for Housing and Urban Development has said the build-to-rent apartments for professionals would provide cheaper accommodation, making it more affordable to those who choose it as an option.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Drivetime programme, Damien English also said there would be stronger national guidelines issued to local authorities.
Mr English said the Government's strategy is to provide different types of accommodation at different prices.
He said the Government has secured €5.5bn to spend on housing and there has been a lot of progress made.
