Irish Rents have been steadily increasing since 2013, in particular in Dublin. The average rent in Ireland has risen by 5% for the 25th consecutive quarter, according to the latest rental price report from daft.ie. Renting in Ireland costs on average EUR1,334 per monthly, which is 30% more than the peak figure of 2008, according to the latest report. Also, figures from the report show that Dublin rents are rising by 10.9% over the past year.
Dublin is, unsurprisingly, the most expensive place to rent in all of Ireland.
Average rent in South County Dublin costs EUR2,156 per Month, South Dublin City costs EUR2,094 and Central Dublin costs EUR2,016 each month. North Dublin City charges EUR1,847 per Monat. Rents for houses and apartments outside Dublin average EUR695, but EUR660 for apartments.
1. Manufacture shortage
Stop building new homes. You’ll soon run out. For a population that is 55% larger than it was 10 years ago, we’re building houses at 1970s costs. There are many ghost settlements. But they were built where they were not needed. Ghost estates have never been a problem for Urban Dublin. Co Cork is still home to 130 while Co Donegal boasts 64. No houses is a place to rent and buy, but there are other options.
2. End of the living/over-the shop scheme
This was a truly generous scheme. It could have provided more housing for those who needed it and revitalized the city’s old towns and centres. Ireland’s urban streets have many empty upper floors. The scheme allowed for 100 per cent tax exemption to help convert vacant spaces from shops into apartments. The rate of take-up was shocking. Owners of buildings cited complicated regulations. There were not enough streets included in the scheme.
3. Tax treatment for private landlords
Without landlords, there is no rental property. In fact, more than 70% of private landlords owning mortgages feel that the rents are not enough to cover their payments. Private rental sector relief from mortgage interest on rental income decreased to 75 percent in 2009, while the commercial rental sector receives 100% relief. New measures restore 100 percent relief for landlords renting their properties to tenants receiving State assistance.
4. Incentives to make homes inhospitable
Commercial rates apply to commercial properties occupied. 50% of commercial rates will apply to an unoccupied habitable property. The owner or developer may decide to tear down toilets, lifts, and stairs in order to avoid any tax liability. It’s shocking that this has been going on so long, even though the Government says they will be changing it.
5. Stop building social housing
Everyone blames previous governments for ending social housing construction and forcing local authorities in order to rent from landlords. Unfortunately, the current government hasn’t done much about it. Only 35,000 units of social housing will be constructed, while the rest will either be leased out or rented. People with low fixed incomes do not belong in the private industry, at least not currently.
6. Too many tiny apartments
Dublin City Council made changes to its development plan in December 2007. It increased the minimum size of one-bedroom apartments by 55sqm from the 45sqm national standard. However, we already have many small one-bed apartment buildings that were built in the years 1999 to 2004. There are too many small apartments that make decent housing prohibitively expensive.
7. Don’t let the sector get worse
In a three year program to eliminate substandard private accommodation, almost 85 per cent of Dublin flats were found to have failed to meet minimum standards. The problems found included fire safety issues and rat infestations. Flats older than 55 sq m are not required by new apartment rules. They will be further impacted if they get so bad that they must be demolished.
8. Bedsits should be banned
Bedsit does not necessarily have to mean substandard accommodation. Flats that lack a bathroom are subject to the 2013 ban. Although it is sensible to take these units out, the ban has caused a drop in the availability of cheaper accommodation. Instead of insisting on the upgrade or termination of the tenancy, a more sensible approach would have been to ban these units from being relet.
9. Flying a political kite
The Government has finally released a plan to combat spiralling rents. However, the landlords were scared by the prolonged public toing or froing. Many landlords raised their rents recently because of that fear. It would be a benefit to landlords as well as tenants if politicians came up with an agreement behind closed-doors and stuck to it.
10. Construction is slow at the moment
Rebooting construction has been painfully slow. Budget announcement of 20,000 new homes to be built on National Asset Management Agency properties by 2020 should be a step in the right direction. In Dublin, 90 percent will be built. This should alleviate the rental sector from the stress. There is a greater demand for homes, and more are needed quickly. One problem is the outdated construction methods. The delivery process could be significantly accelerated if modular, factory-built, prefabricated housing is used on-site.