Tens of thousands of rental properties fail to meet safety standards, new data shows

In Cork City, there were 10,279 properties inspected, the highest of any council area in the country. Of those, 2,669 were found to not meet standards.

More than half of all rental properties inspected last year did not meet existing standards, with the level of substandard accommodation particularly high in Co Cork. 

New data from the Department of Housing shows there were 62,085 rental properties inspected by local authorities in 2024.

Of these, 37,800 were found to not meet standards as set out in legislation.

These standards include specific requirements around structural repair of the building, fire safety, ventilation, heating, natural light and the safety of gas, oil and electrical installations.

In Cork county, there were a total of 2,863 properties inspected, and of those, 2,208 were found to not meet existing standards.

In Cork City, meanwhile, there were 10,279 properties inspected, the highest of any council area in the country. Of those, 2,669 were found to not meet standards.

Other areas where there were high levels of rental properties not meeting existing standards include Fingal (3,768), Dublin City (3,209), South Dublin (3,594), Dún Laoghaire (2,961) and Meath (2,692).

In total, there were 80,151 inspections carried out across the year, which includes figures for second inspections of properties.

In a statement, housing minister James Browne said he wanted to see “robust inspections continue in earnest”.

“We want to ensure that rental tenants are afforded standards which ensure requirements such as adequate heating, ventilation, sanitation, and fire safety measures are met. It’s the basics — and it is what renters should be able to expect from every landlord,” Mr Browne said.

He confirmed €10.5m in additional funding would be provided to local authorities to help them ramp up on inspections for 2025.

If a local authority finds a property does not meet existing standards, it can issue either improvement letters or improvement notices to landlords. These outline the renovations that are required to take place to remedy the shortfall in standards.

When a landlord fails to comply with these orders, local authorities can escalate proceedings and issue a prohibition notice. This directs the landlord not to re-let the house until improvements have been made.

If a landlord then re-lets the house, the local authority can take the landlord to court, with penalties including a fine of up to €5,000, six months' imprisonment or a daily €400 fine for breaching the order.

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The figures on rental inspections comes as the housing minister received a report from the Housing Agency outlining possible changes to rent pressure zones.

While no decisions have been made yet, it is understood options within the paper include the outright abolition of rent pressure zones, their retention, or allowing landlords to hike rents beyond the existing 2% limit.