Rental Press Release
For immediate release:
22 January, 2020
Labour candidate Ciarán Ahern has challenged Fine Gael to explain the up to 40% increase in rent prices in Dublin South West constituency since 2016 General Election.
Speaking today the Dublin South-West candidate said:
“My generation don’t understand why Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil won’t introduce rent controls”.
Pointing out that average rent for a one bed apartment in the constituency is €1,518 per month, and the average rent for a two-bed house is €1,726 per month, both up 40% since 2016, he added:
‘Labour proposes freezing and capping rents. We want to increase security of tenure, and introduce a deposit protection scheme which is standard in other European countries and we also want an NCT for rental properties, amongst other measures to create fairer conditions for renters’
According to Mr Ahern: ‘I want to see immediate movement in the Dáil, so that it becomes a realistic aim to be able to save for a deposit for a home while paying rent (and not to mention also paying for childcare). The Taoiseach has suggested that my generation should all simply move home with our parents or emigrate to save for deposits, but most people do not have that luxury.
Mr Ahern added:We also need to halt the crisis of homelessness. People are being evicted and cannot then find anywhere else to live because of soaring rents.
It is unconscionable that we have children in schools all over the country who do not have a home, children living in a place they call ‘room’ -- whether it is in a hotel, a hostel, a hub or somewhere even more precarious.
With Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil both ruling out rent controls, yet again we have two conservative parties relying on conservative legal advice to protect vested interests.
The housing crisis needs to end. Rent controls are a huge part of the solution. It’s not rocket science. It’s about where our priorities lie, and who and what we value in our society.’
Ends
Notes to editors:
Mr Ahern will launch his General Election campaign for Dublin South West tomorrow (Thursday, 23 January) at 8pm in D’Arcy McGees at the Spawell, Templeogue.
Earlier today, the Labour Party launched its Renters Need a Break plan. Within the plan, the Labour Party proposes to:
Immediately freeze rents until enough homes are built to alleviate the current crisis. Labour froze rents in 2015 for two years, and it can be done again.
Introduce a system of rent caps, ending Fine Gael’s system of allowing rents to increase by 4% each year when wages are not increasing at anything like that rate.
Strongly regulate short-term letting and enforce the law to free up homes.
Strengthen the powers and staffing of the Rental Tenancies Board in order to stop unfair evictions and allow renters enter into secure long-term leases.
Ban the practice of landlords asking for more than one month’s rent as a deposit
Introduce an NCT-style inspection of rental premises that issues Minimum Standards Certificates and oblige local authorities to publish annual statistics on their inspections.
Help first-time buyers by ensuring that rental payments are counted as part of credit ratings.
Re-introduce a Rent to Buy scheme through our affordable housing plan where a person with a tenancy for 3 years who pays all their rent would see it turned into a deposit for the property that they will then go on to own.
The average price for a one-bedroom apartment in the constituency was €1,518 per month in 2019, versus €1,082 per month in Q1 2016. This equates to a €435 increase.
Rents for a two-bedroom house in the constituency rose by 39% from €1,246 to €1,726 during the same time period, according to data collated from the Daft Rental Index 2019*.
Sources:
Daft Rental Index Q1 2016: https://www.daft.ie/report/q1-2016-daft-rental-report.pdf
Daft Rental index Q3 2019: https://www.daft.ie/report/ronan-lyons-2019q3-daftrentalprice
For more information or to seek additional comment, please contact:
Ciarán Ahern: ciaranaherndsw@gmail.com