Renters across Ireland are in crisis as it emerged today that the number of notices to quit issued by landlords has skyrocketed since the Covid ban on evictions has lifted.
In Dublin alone, the number of notices has jumped from from 116 in Q1 of 2021 before the ban was lifted in April to 398 in Q1 of 2022. Between those 12 months, there has been an increase each quarter with 293 in Q2 of 2021, 299 in Q3 and 311 in Q4.
The biggest reason for this is landlords planning to sell the property they have been renting out with 45 in Q1 of 2021 to a huge leap of 241 planning to sell in Q1 this year. It follows a trend seen across Ireland with the number of notices to quit skyrocketing countrywide to 1,781 in the second quarter of 2022 - a significant jump from 1,132 issued in Q1 this year.
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There were 698 notices to quit issued in Ireland during Q1 because the landlord was planning to sell the property, with a further 210 issued because they or a family member were moving in. A breach of regulations was the reason for 109 notices, while the remainder were due to other issues such as refurbishment or the property was unfit for use.
Calls have been made to Minister for Housing Darragh O'Brien to hold an urgent meeting to address the crisis in the rental sector, with Sinn Fein TD Eoin O Broin calling the figures "alarming".
He said: “These figures are very alarming and require urgent action. The number of Notices To Quit has soared in recent months, which will see a dramatic escalation in evictions in the near future.
“In Quarter 1 of last year there were 352 eviction notices. That rose to 841 the following quarter as a result of Darragh O’Brien ending the Covid 19 ban on evictions in April last year. Since then the numbers have escalated exponentially, to 1,132 notices in Quarter 1 of this year and 1,781 notices in Quarter 2.
“The Minister for Housing needs to convene an urgent meeting to address this clear crisis in the rental sector. This meeting must happen immediately and include the Residential Tenancies Board, tenants and landlords representative organisations and opposition housing spokespersons. We urgently need a crisis intervention plan to slow down the disorderly exit of private landlords exiting the rental market."
According to figures from the RTB, the number of private tenancies registered in Ireland has plummeted since 2017 when it reached its peak. At the end of that year there were 313,002 registered compared to 297, 837 by December 2020.
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During the same time the number of landlords dropped from 173, 197 to 165, 736. Information for the period between Q1 2021 and Q2 2022 is currently unavailable from the RTB Data Hub.
Deputy O Broin continued: “All options must be on the table for consideration including a temporary ban on evictions, an accelerated tenant in situ purchase scheme by Local Authorities, an acceleration of social housing delivery and tax reform in the private rental sector.
“On the basis of the figures released to me the number of single people and families being evicted will increase every month for the remainder of this year and into 2023. This will lead to a level of homelessness that we previously would have thought impossible. I will be writing to the Minister for Housing urging him to act and act now.”
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