Major rise in people renting out spare rooms in own homes

There has been a significant jump in the numbers of people renting out spare rooms in their own homes, possibly in response to calls for more private accommodation for college students.

Although the latest Revenue Commissioners data suggests the average amount paid to owner-occupiers for renting a room has dipped significantly, the numbers taking advantage of the associated tax relief rose to their highest level ever at nearly 6,500 in 2015.

This was 750, or 13%, more than in 2014 when the tax foregone by the State for allowing the relief on rent-a-room income reached a record €9.3m.