Substandard rental properties highlighted

More than one in five rental properties are failing to meet the minimum legal standards in this country, according to Fine Gael Senator Pascal Donohue who says while the number of inspections of properties is up, the number of prosecutions is down.

Of the 19,800 properties inspected last year, a staggering 4,306 failed to meet even the minimum standards laid down for rental properties in this country.

Despite the fact that the Government brought in new legal standards to deal with rogue landlords and substandard accomodation, a huge number of properties are still not complying with the law.

Local authorities have spent €20m since 2004 trying to deal with this problem but despite thousands of properties being below legal minimum standards, only three landlords were prosecuted in 2009, compared to 25 in 2007.

Senator Donohue is calling on the Government to ensure that any new regulations that are put in place to deal with this issue are fully implemented.

Under the Housing regulations of 2008, all landlords have a legal obligation to ensure their rented properties comply with these regulations.