‘Out of control’ rental sector sparks call for drastic measures

Housing support groups have claimed the rental sector is now “out of control” after latest figures showed record levels of homelessness ahead of Christmas, including 3,333 children.

Thu, 21 Dec, 2017 - 00:00

Noel Baker

The figures, published by the Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government on Tuesday, showed 8,857 people in emergency accommodation in November, with the Simon Communities highlighting a 27% increase in the number of homeless people over the past 12 months.

Over the same period, the number of children in emergency accommodation rose by 31%, with the crisis exacerbated by figures in the latest Residential Tenancies Board Rent Index showing that, nationally, rents grew 9.5% over the year to the end of the third quarter of 2017.

Spokesperson for the Simon Communities, Niamh Randall, said the statistics showed the rental market was now “out of control”.

“Rent Pressure Zones are clearly not working; measures which impact all tenancies and limit rent increases within all tenancies are required,” she said. “In the absence of an accessible private rental sector or social housing, people have nowhere to go.”

She said a range of drastic measures were now needed, including full rent certainty, linking rents to the Consumer Price Index, and adjusting Rent Supplement/HAP payments regularly.

Responding to the RTB figures, Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy said: “We are well above the peak that we have seen in previous years towards the end of the Celtic Tiger. The solution for our rent crisis is to build more homes, that’s why last week I published with Damien English new legislation to convert commercial premises above the shop into residential homes.”

Reacting to the RTB Rent Index, national housing charity Threshold repeated its call for the introduction of a mandatory rent register and proper enforcement of legislation to prevent more people becoming homeless.

The Q3 report showed a 9.5% annualised rise in average rent for new tenancies across the country and a 9.9% year-on-year increase in Dublin, where an average rent is now €1,518 a month.

Threshold chair, Dr Aideen Hayden, said the private rental sector was driving homelessness in some cases and added: “It is sad to say that we are seeing landlords enforcing eviction notices even this week and leaving people without homes for Christmas.”