Rent pressure zones and Dublin rents
Deputy Ó Broin argued the housing and residential tenancies Bill showed RPZs were not working, citing continued rent rises in Dublin. The Minister of State replied that recent legislation and the autumn Bill would strengthen the position and that all options would be considered.
The housing and residential tenancies Bill is listed in the summer legislative programme. This week's Residential Tenancies Board, RTB, data prove that the rent pressure zones, RPZs, are not working. We now have nine quarters of data that show that the 4% cap in Dublin has not tempered rents in any way whatsoever. We had a 7.7% increase this quarter. In quarter 1 of 2018 it was 8.7% and in the previous year it was 8.5%. Average rents in Dublin are €1,600 a month. It is now €3,000 more a year for the average renter in Dublin than it was when the rent pressure zones were introduced. Given the abject failure of the RPZs, will the Minister commit to using the forthcoming housing and residential tenancies Bill to give renters some real relief, both for those struggling with high rents and those locked out of the private rental sector?
Comment on this
As the Deputy well knows, the legislation that was debated and passed in recent weeks and months will also have an impact on rent pressure zones and it will strengthen the position in that regard as well. Naturally, the legislation coming forward in the autumn is something we can use to try to strengthen the case. We will look at all options.