The lowest number of properties available to rent through the Housing Assistant Payment Scheme was recorded by Simon Communities, with only 29 HAP rentals available over a three-day period last month.
This means that the lowest percentage of ownership within HAP rates was 4.3% in March this year, rising to 10.8% in March 2022.
The charity’s latest Locked Out of the Market report examines the experience of low-income and HAP dependent people accessing housing in the private rental market.
The latest report considered the availability of properties within both standard and discretionary HAP limits for four categories of households in 16 regions of the country: single person, couple, couple/one parent and one child and couple/single mother Father and two children.
For the second time since 2015, there were no properties available within the standard HAP rate across the four household types, reports RTE.
The report found that 672 properties within the 16 sectors were available for rent at no cost on the three dates examined last month.
This was an 11% decrease (85 properties) from the 757 available in the December 2022 Lock Out Report.
The report found that 70% (472) of properties available to rent at any cost were located in the three areas of Dublin studied.
Portlaoise had the least number of houses available to rent with only three properties available on three days, reports RTE.
Speaking in Wicklow today, Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien said the report showed “there is a very constrained rental market”, reports RTE.
Defending the end of the eviction ban, he said: “The reason the Government took the difficult decision that we have over the last couple of weeks, is not to make that any worse. In the short term, there was no one saying that the eviction moratorium should not end, what the discussion was about was those who wanted to extend it further, to the end of this year, and then indeed into next year, and what would that do for supply?” reports RTE.
The LDA said it is on track to deliver 5,000 such homes for affordable rent or purchase by the end of 2026.
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said the model was “exactly the kind of model we want to see more of around the country” with a mix of development, reports RTE.
Minister O’Brien said the rent-at-cost model did not exist 18 months ago and said 1,000 such rentals have now been approved.
The monthly rent for the two bedroom property in development costs is approximately €1,455.
Twenty-four people are already hired at Archer Wood, according to the LDA, with a further 24 applications pending for the second phase, reports RTE.
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