Students face housing time bomb as rent scheme nears end

THOUSANDS of students could be forced out of their homes and into dilapidatedand overcrowded accommodation, the Union of Students in Ireland (USI) warned yesterday.

Up to 20,000 young people could face eviction and be pressured into student “shantytowns” when a low- rent housing scheme expires in three years, the group claimed.

Property developers who took advantage of a 10-year tax incentive in the Finance Act 1999 to build Section 50 student properties will soon be able to cash in.

USI fears when the 10-year cut-off approaches for the first wave of developments they will be transferred to the private sector.

“Almost overnight, properties presently classified as Section 50 student accommodation will move into the open market and their rents will soar to open market levels,” said USI president Colm Hamrogue.

“The end of Section 50 could force 20,000 students to sleep on floors or exceed fire safety regulations for maximum occupancy,” Mr Hamrogue warned.

“However, the Government can avert this nightmare scenario by renewing the section or legislating to provide thousands of new low-rent student residences.”

USI welfare officer Kelly Mackey said the housing crisis will intensify in the coming decade.

“The problem will worsen with each Section 50 unit that moves out of its designation and into the private open market,” she said.

“The idea of 20,000 young people priced out of all but the most overcrowded or dilapidated accommodation is truly alarming, and would be a disaster forstudents and local communities alike.

“Any potential Government for 2007 must announce plans to defuse the student housing time bomb by ensuring that thousands of rent-controlled residences remain for students.”