Rule changes will mean at least €3k rent rises for tens of thousands, Sinn Féin says

According to Residential Tenancy Board figures, the average rent for existing tenancies across the country is €1,482. Eoin Ó Broin argued that the average market rent is €1,731. File photo

Sinn Féin has warned that changes to rent rules will lead to 60,000 households facing an extra €3,000 to €5,000 in rent every year. This, its housing spokesperson Eoin Ó Broin warned, included rises of up to €5,300.

The Government intends to introduce changes to rent rules across the country from March 1. This will see the introduction of six-year leases, with rent increases limited to the rate of inflation or 2%, whichever is lower.

However, if a tenant decides to leave their tenancy at any point during the six years, the landlord can hike the rent to match market rates before entering a new agreement.

For new tenancies from March 1, landlords will be able to reset rents to market rates if the previous rent was below market level. Mr Ó Broin said Residential Tenancy Board (RTB) data shows that around 60,000 new tenancies are registered per year.

According to RTB figures, the average rent for existing tenancies across the country is €1,482. Mr Ó Broin argued that the average market rent is €1,731.

Sinn Féin housing spokesperson Eoin O Broin says the Governemnt is 'out of touch'. File photo: Niall Carson/PA

He suggested that if landlords can reset rents to market rates between tenancies, this could lead to people nationwide paying €2,988 more in rent over the course of a year, an increase of 16.8%.

However, due to differing average rents across counties, some renters could face higher increases. This, he argued, included renters in Galway city, where he predicted rents could increase by €5,292 a year.

In Dublin, rents could rise by €3,516, rising to €3,684 in the city centre. In Cork, there could be a 25% increase in rents, with tenants having to pay an extra €3,696. This drops to €3,336 extra in the city.

“At the time when rents are already unacceptably high, the idea that pushing up rents even higher as a solution to the housing crisis shows how out of touch this Government is,” Mr Ó Broin said.

Labour’s Conor Sheehan, meanwhile, argued that the changes will cause rents to rise 15% annually. He called on housing minister James Browne to introduce a “rent break mechanism” in the legislation if increases reach this level.

“I got an email this morning from somebody who is looking at renting an apartment in a part of Limerick,” he said.

The rent was initially supposed to be €1,500. Now the landlord has come back, and does not want to agree the terms of the tenancy until after this new legislation, and the rent has now apparently gone up to €1,900.

In the Dáil, when Sinn Féin’s calculations were put to Taoiseach Micheál Martin, he told Mary Lou McDonald he “disagreed fundamentally”.

The Taoiseach argued that the changes will bring the “ending of no fault evictions”, as he argued that 500,000 in existing tenancies would not be impacted.

“The minister and the Government have taken a decision to balance this in terms of greater security, and it's unquestionably greater security for tenants,” he added.

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The Taoiseach argued that Ms McDonald “couldn’t care less” about whether the Government provided more homes, branding her “full of sound bite”.

Social Democrats leader Holly Cairns, meanwhile, accused Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael of “betrayal” as these changes were not in the programme for government.

The new rent rules will be discussed for five hours in the Dáil on Wednesday evening before a vote at 11pm. A protest has been organised outside Leinster House from 5pm in opposition to the changes.