Government plans to reform tenancy arrangements will result in higher rents, according to a joint report from four opposition parties, reports Breaking News.
Housing Minister James Browne said he is “very confident” the changes will become law on March 1st, following pre-legislative scrutiny of the Residential Tenancies Bill that exposed sharp divisions between Government and opposition members, reports Breaking News.
Representatives from Sinn Féin, the Social Democrats, Labour and People Before Profit on the Oireachtas Housing Committee produced a minority report urging the Government to withdraw the Bill.
They said expert testimony to the committee showed the proposals would lead to “dramatic increases” in rents for private tenants and students, effectively dismantling the protections previously provided by rent pressure zones (RPZs), reports Breaking News.
They also argue that tenants in newly built rental properties will have “no rental protections whatsoever”, and say the measures fail to strengthen security of tenure for existing renters.
Under the new policy, rent pressure zones are being extended nationwide, limiting annual rent increases to the lower of inflation or 2 per cent, reports Breaking News.
New tenancies created from March 1 will be set at open market rates and will include a minimum six-year rolling tenancy.
Once the six-year term ends, landlords will be allowed to reset rents to market levels, reports Breaking News.
Large landlords, defined as those with four or more tenancies, will be prohibited from carrying out no-fault evictions for tenancies that begin from March.
Smaller landlords will still be able to end tenancies without fault in limited cases, such as financial hardship or to house a family member, but in doing so they will not be permitted to reset rents until the six-year period has expired, reports Breaking News.
The new regulations will not apply to tenancies created before March, apartments begun after June 9th 2025, or purpose-built student accommodation.
Sinn Féin housing spokesperson Eoin Ó Broin said: “For new first-time tenancies where the previous tenant left voluntarily, the landlord can increase the rent to the full market rent, reports Breaking News.
“In Dublin, that would be €2,500-3,500 on average, lower than that outside,” reports Breaking News.
“For new first-time tenants where the landlord evicted the tenants for no-fault grounds, the landlord won’t be able to increase the rent at the start, but they will every six years after that,” reports Breaking News.
“And then for new rental stock, we have an even worse situation where not only will landlords be entitled to set the rent at the top of the market, there will be no rent pressure zone cap in between so it will be Consumer Price Index every single year”, reports Breaking News.
Mr Ó Broin said that based on current trends, including average tenancy lengths of three to three-and-a-half years and the fact that 25 per cent of RTB registrations are first-time tenancies, the “overwhelming majority of renters” would be paying full market rent within four years.
He said soaring rents were contributing to homelessness, forcing young people to emigrate or return to their family homes, and creating “a real nightmare” for renters nearing retirement age, reports Breaking News.
Social Democrats TD Rory Hearne said there had been a “massive wave of evictions” last year and warned that higher rents would worsen homelessness.
Mr Hearne said students would be among those most affected by the reforms, as many vacate accommodation during the summer months, reports Breaking News.
“We’re going to see student rents hit the absolute roof and more students locked out of being able to afford accommodation,” reports Breaking News.
Mr Browne said the legislation was “essential”.
Speaking at a press conference at Government Buildings, he said: “If we are going to drive and deliver the homes that we need at scale, we need investment, and we need to give tenants security as well – that’s what this does on both levels. It drives investment by giving certainty to the international market and the national market for those who might be prepared to invest funding”, reports Breaking News.
He added: “But also for the tenants for the first time introducing security of tenure into this country, which is normal in almost every other country in the western world,” reports Breaking News.
“So we strike a balance here between landlords and tenants, and to get that investment in – and I think there’s wins here for everybody”, reports Breaking News.
Mr Browne said his department had worked closely with the Attorney General and had considered the recommendations made by the Oireachtas committee.
Addressing student accommodation concerns, he said he had held several meetings with Further Education Minister James Lawless to examine that issue, reports Breaking News.
Mr Browne was speaking as the Government launched a call for proposals under the €1bn Housing Infrastructure Investment Fund.
The fund will be managed by the new Housing Activation Office within his department and will be open to local authorities and the Land Development Agency, reports Breaking News.
Mr Browne said funding decisions would be made in the first half of this year.
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