The Minister for Housing has defended recent initiatives aimed at regulating the rental sector, stating they aim to fairly balance tenant protections with the need to encourage investment, reports RTE.
While speaking in Galway this morning, James Browne noted that “there were a few different moving parts” in the proposed legislation, but stressed these were essential given the extent of the housing challenges the nation is dealing with.
“There’s always going to be a challenge around the complexity of doing anything like this, there’s no one size fits all to bring a solution to this kind of complex situation,” he said, reports RTE.
He emphasized the importance of finding middle ground—protecting renters while also keeping developers and investors engaged in construction efforts.
Browne said the Government’s objective was both to safeguard current tenants and to boost the supply of rental homes. He stated that “a massive step change” was required to achieve this and expressed confidence that the new measures would help deliver that shift.
He explained that investors needed predictability around long-term regulations concerning tenant protections, reports RTE.
The Minister pointed out that the current Rent Pressure Zones (RPZs), which cap rent increases at two per cent, could result in financial losses for investors if inflation exceeds that cap.
This, he said, was creating a “blockage” in the system and emphasized the need to fix what he described as “a viability gap” affecting new housing developments, reports RTE.
Browne mentioned that the Government was preparing to introduce further actions to close this gap in the near future.
He also announced that starting next March, new lease agreements would require a minimum six-year tenancy, aiming to provide stability for renters, while giving landlords the opportunity to periodically adjust rents. He believed six years was an appropriate compromise, reports RTE.
However, he clarified that landlords wouldn’t be permitted to exploit this rule to raise rents “to a mad number” and would be limited to charging market rates or less. The Residential Tenancies Board would handle any conflicts and would receive more support to carry out this role.
Minister Browne made these remarks at the opening of a new Threshold housing charity office in Galway, where housing costs and shortages are deeply affecting many people, reports RTE.
He confirmed that he had received cabinet support to address the influence of short-term holiday lets on the broader rental market.
“We’re in a housing crisis, where there is an issue with supply, we have to take priority decisions, and the priority has to be for people to have homes over short term lets” he said, reports RTE.
The Government has already introduced proposals to ban short term lets that do not have planning permission in towns with at least 10,000 residents.
The Minister admitted this might affect those who rely on such income but argued that the broader housing demand must take precedence, reports RTE.
He acknowledged the poor enforcement of current rules on short-term rentals, but asserted that “it should come to an end now”.
Mr Browne said upcoming legislation would include “really strong enforcement powers to ban the advertisement of short term lets”, reports RTE.
He also indicated a willingness to extend additional enforcement powers to local councils.
The Minister has several appointments in the region today, including a session with campaigners in Conamara, who argue that the growing number of housing approvals in Gaeltacht areas is threatening the ability of Irish speakers to stay in their communities.
Later today, he is also scheduled to open Galway city’s first cost rental housing development, reports RTE.
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