Latest news with #ResidentialTenancies(Amendment)Bill2025
Irish Independent
18 hours ago
- Business
- Irish Independent
Rent pressure zone now covers entire country as legislation rushed through
All people with existing tenancies, so long as they stay where they are, will only be faced with a 2pc annual rent rise, or the Consumer Price Index rate of inflation, whichever is the lower. Confirmation that all renters are now covered came after the Seanad rushed all stages of the legislation today and it was sent immediately to Áras an Uachtaráin. "Having received and considered the Residential Tenancies (Amendment) Bill 2025, the President has signed the Bill and it has accordingly become law,' a statement from his spokesperson confirmed. The Government rushed through the legislation to head off an expected rush by landlords outside the existing RPZs, which covered most of the country, to increase rents ahead of new rent rules announced by Housing Minister James Browne earlier this month. The new rules are designed to stimulate investment in rental developments, but sparked warnings that they would inevitably lead to rent increases. The Government is being pressured again over the housing crisis after announcing a swathe of new rent and housing measures. New six-year minimum tenancies on offer from March next year have been criticised for allowing landlords to 'reset' rents every six years. Earlier, Housing Minister James Browne said the target to build 41,000 new homes this year is 'not realistic'. Mr Browne has admitted previously that meeting the 2025 target would be 'extremely challenging' and all predictions are trending around 34,000. Speaking on Newstalk on Thursday, he said he is committed to enacting a 'step change' in the housing department and will clear 'the dead wood out of the way so that homes can get delivered'. ADVERTISEMENT 'I think the challenge we have this year is we're coming off a much lower base from last year than was expected,' he said of the housing targets. 'We had hoped for much higher figures last year. 'I think, looking at all of the different predictions, which are fairly consistent, I think 41,000 is not realistic for this year. 'We will wait to see how the year works out. I don't particularly like getting into predictions. 'My position as minister is to maximise supply, maximise the delivery of new homes and, irrespective of what the housing numbers will be this year, I'm making a step change so we can get that housing supply up, because we need to get from 30,000 onto 50,000, on to 60,000 houses. '40,000 houses is nowhere near enough.' The last Fianna Fáil-Fine Gael coalition built more than 130,000 homes between 2020 and 2024, while the current coalition has set a target of in excess of 300,000 new homes between 2025 and 2030. The target for this year is 41,000 new builds, despite the fact the Government missed its target of 33,450 last year and also missed its newbuild social housing target by 1,429 last year. The Central Bank has also projected the Government will miss its own housing targets by a wide margin for the next three years – and on Thursday revised its prediction down further, predicting 32,500 newbuilds by the end of 2025. The Fianna Fail-Fine Gael Government, supported by several independents, has insisted boosting supply is the best way to encourage affordability while opposition parties argue more state-owned homes and regulation is needed. 'We'd gotten to a point with housing where we had seen a very significant increase in supply over the last number of years, and then it's plateaued,' Tánaiste and Fine Gael leader Simon Harris said. 'The job of this government, and the job we're working on day in day out, is to get that momentum back.'
RTÉ News
2 days ago
- Politics
- RTÉ News
Bill to extend Rent Pressure Zones 'an utter shambles'
The Dáil is debating legislation to extend Rent Pressure Zones (RPZs) across the country. The Residential Tenancies (Amendment) Bill 2025 is expected to be passed by the lower house of the Oireachtas today and go to the Seanad tomorrow. Sinn Féin's Spokesperson on Housing Eoin Ó Broin described the proposed legislation as "an utter shambles" and "utterly defensible". He told the Dáil that he has never witnessed such a "haphazard, ramshackle, back of the envelope" approach to a crucial policy, adding that it is a "farce". Minister of State at the Department of Housing Christopher O'Sullivan, who introduced the bill, said that the Government is moving fast because tenants need protection and this will be delivered by extending RPZs. "This is an immediate and concrete protection against high rent inflation," he added, claiming that it would create certainty, stability and clarity for the sector. Mr O'Sullivan added that "this will come as a great sigh of relief" to many of his constituents in Cork South-West. However, Mr Ó Broin described the Government move as an "assault on renters" who "will be the losers". Ministers, he added, "scrambled around" to add references to students to the bill after failing to mention them in any advance briefing. "It is the Fianna Fáil rent hike bill," the deputy said, adding that the party's solution to rising rents "is to keep those rents rising". Mr Ó Broin also said that the move amounts to the dismantling of Rent Pressure Zones and "rips the heart out of the RPZs". He claimed that "in the best case scenario" the proposals will create a modest increase of (housing) supply in high-value areas "and everybody else will be left behind". Security of tenure changes will benefit a small group of tenants, Mr Ó Broin conceded, but said they will create more complicated and difficult rules that can be exploited by rogue landlords and will lead accidental landlords to make mistakes. All this will add to the workload of the already overloaded Residential Tenacies Board (RTB), he said. Mr O'Sullivan defended the bill, claiming the Government is aiming to strike a balance in its approach. "We aim to attract investment, but we know that tenants deserve and need fair treatment," he said. The minister noted that a larger landlord - with four or more tenancies - cannot end a tenancy created on or after March 2026 via a no-fault eviction. "No-fault evictions will be restricted to smaller landlords and outlawed for larger landlords," Mr O'Sullivan said. The minister added that rent resetting would be allowed only in specific circumstances. "This will come as a great sigh of relief" to many of his constituents in Cork South-West, the minister added. Minister of State John Cummins said that 17% of tenancies are outside RPZs. He emphasised the role of enforcement and noted that the RTB has launched "several in-depth investigations into serious, deliberate and repeated breaches of rental law".
Irish Examiner
2 days ago
- Politics
- Irish Examiner
Emergency laws to extend RPZs nationwide will be pushed through this week
New emergency laws to extend rent pressure zones (RPZs) across the country are set to be pushed through by the end of the week, despite accusations that they have 'not been thought through'. James Browne, the housing minister, has said it is a matter of 'priority and urgency' to extend RPZs across the entire country to prevent landlords from hiking rents by more than 2% per year. Mr Browne has conceded that it would be 'unworkable' to introduce 'special exemptions' for students living in the private rental sector to prevent rents being reset when they leave a property. 'There's always challenges like that. Students, nurses, gardaí, doctors, consultants,' said Mr Browne. 'I think, to try and engineer into the legislation that a landlord would then have to identify what that person's role is. Are they a student? Are they a full-time student, a part-time student, or what qualifies a student? It will be unworkable and I think it would be unenforceable in those particular sets of circumstances.' The new laws will expand existing RPZ protections to the approximately 17% of tenancies across the country which are not currently in rent-controlled areas. Despite criticism by opposition TDs in the Dáil on Tuesday night, the Dáil schedule for Wednesday has been revised to allow the Residential Tenancies (Amendment) Bill 2025 go through all of its stages. It is expected the legislation will then move to the Seanad for further approval tomorrow before the bill is signed into law by the President on Friday. At present, landlords outside RPZs are not restricted in how much they can increase the rents they charge each year. The changes to introduce a national RPZ come ahead of wider rental reform from the Government expected to come into effect on March 1, 2026. The new proposals will allow for landlords to reset their rents either after six years or if a tenant voluntarily leaves the property. Mr Browne said: I do need the support and expect the support of the opposition to do this as well. Labour housing spokesman Conor Sheehan said the Government's response to a Sinn Féin motion supported by the opposition and debated last night was 'very disappointing'. He said the Coalition has effectively 'thrown renters under a bus by completely undermining housing options for young people, for students, for junior doctors , for transient, and migrant workers'. TDs recounted being contacted by constituents who were sleeping in their cars, with Sinn Féin's Pearse Doherty stating the Government, in its 'ivory towers', does not recognise that 'it's not just raining, but it's lashing on ordinary people the length and breadth of the country'. Mr Doherty told the housing minister: You don't get it, you don't get what people are going through. Social Democrats TD Rory Hearne described the housing, rent, and homelessness crisis as a 'social catastrophe' and raised the 'despair and anxiety' of 500,000 people stuck in their childhood bedrooms and unable to see a time when they can hope to begin their adult lives. He added that housing is human right and hit out at decades of bad decisions from successive governments, which has focused on 'investor funds and corporate landlords profiting from housing'. Labour has submitted emergency amendments to the Government's bill which would introduce a two-year rent freeze and roll out fines of up to €100,000 for landlords breaking the law. It is expected that other opposition parties will also table amendments to the proposed laws.
The Journal
3 days ago
- Business
- The Journal
Emergency legislation to extend RPZs nationwide to be published
THE GOVERNMENT PLANS to publish emergency legislation today to extend Rent Pressure Zones (RPZs) across the entire country. Last week, the Tánaiste confirmed that the legislation would be fast-tracked, indicating that legislation around the bigger reforms, which will be introduced after 1 March, will be advanced at a later stage. Housing Minister James Browne will seek to introduce and publish the Residential Tenancies (Amendment) Bill 2025 as emergency legislation today, with Cabinet agreeing last week it would be progressed as a priority. This will extend the RPZs to all areas of the country until Feb 2026, ahead of the new rent controls coming in from 1 March. Moving on extending RPZs as a matter of urgency is being done to prevent landlords from increasing rents in areas that are currently not protected in the interim period. Under the current system, over 80% of the country is already in an RPZ and subject to a 2% cap on rent increases or an increase in line with the rate of inflation, whichever is lower. Ireland's presidency of the European Union next year Separately, Tánaiste Simon Harris will outline the significant preparations underway for Ireland's presidency of the European Union next year. Advertisement This will be the eighth time Ireland has hosted the Presidency of the European Council and the first occasion to do so since 2013. During the presidency term there will be 23 informal ministerial meetings hosted in Ireland and a quarter of them will be held outside Dublin. There will also be a summit of the European Political Community and an informal meeting of the European Council, both of which will take place in Dublin. The EPC summit will be the largest meeting Ireland has ever hosted involving leaders of 47 States as well as several heads of EU institutions and international organisations. The Tánaiste will tell colleagues today that resourcing and delivering a successful presidency in the second half 2026 is essential for Ireland's position, influence and reputation in the EU. Aside from ministerial meetings, there will also be a range of conferences and other large-scale events which may be held in locations outside Dublin to help ensure an appropriate regional distribution of Presidency events. The Tánaiste will tell ministers it is essential to have strong relationships established with key figures in the European Parliament in advance of the Presidency and to be on first-name terms with their counterparts in other EU countries. Back-to-School Clothing expansion Two other memos will be brought by Social Protection Minister Dara Calleary and Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe. Calleary will seek approval to extend access to the Back-to-School Clothing and Footwear Allowance to children being cared for by foster families in receipt of the Foster Care Allowance. Related Reads New rental regulations will allow landlords increase rents if previous tenant leaves voluntarily Explainer: Why does the Government want to overhaul Rent Pressure Zones? The once-off payment helps eligible families with the cost of uniforms, clothes and footwear when children start school each autumn. This could help around 2,300 children in 2025. It is payable in respect of children between the ages of 4 and 17 and eligible children between the ages of 18 and 22 who are in full-time second level education. Donohoe will seek approval for committee stage amendments to the Local Property Tax Bill, including one that relates to a property adapted for use by disabled persons. This will provide for a reduction of €105,000 in the chargeable value of a property which has been adapted for use by a disabled person, subject to certain criteria being met. This is an increase from €50,000 in the 2012 Act and will allow owners of properties which have been adapted for use by disabled persons to self-assess the value of the properties at 1 November 2025 at one valuation band lower for the purposes of calculating their LPT charge. The Taoiseach, alongside Jack Chambers and Paschal Donohoe, will look to publish the Analysis of Well-Being in Ireland report for 2025 tomorrow, which will be used to help set out priorities for Budget 2026. Yesterday, at the National Economic Dialogue event in Dublin Castle , it was indicated by a number of government ministers that a VAT reduction for the hospitality sector is a key priority for the upcoming Budget. While the performance in the well-being report is being described ai]s positive overall, the analysis identifies areas where work is needed, such as unemployed people, younger workers, people in bad health, single-parent households, lower income households, and renters paying market rates faring less well than other groups in society. Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
Irish Daily Mirror
3 days ago
- Business
- Irish Daily Mirror
Housing Minister to bring emergency legislation to Cabinet to extend RPZs
Emergency legislation to extend Rent Pressure Zones nationwide will be brought to Cabinet this Tuesday morning by Housing Minister James Browne. It follows criticism from the opposition that the plans to extend the Rent Pressure Zones (RPZs) nationwide were not brought to Cabinet last week as part of the Government's plans to change the rental system. It is understood that Minister Browne will see the publication of the Residential Tenancies (Amendment) Bill 2025 as 'emergency legislation' that can be 'progressed as a priority.' This will extend the RPZs to all areas of the country until February 2026, ahead of the new rent controls coming in from March 1. This will protect approximately 17% of tenancies nationally that are currently outside RPZ, sources said last night. Currently, those outside RPZs are not protected by a restriction on rent increases, other than not charging above market rent. Sources stressed that almost 200,0000 current tenancies will 'not be impacted whatsoever' by the measures proposed by Government. They will see their current 2% rent pressure zone cap remain, and will not have their rents reset every six years. The Irish Mirror understands that the legislation will be placed on the Dáil schedule 'almost immediately' once it is approved by Cabinet. It is also understood the 'role and remit' of the country's Land Development Agency (LDA) will be expanded by a decision at Cabinet brought by Minister Browne. Government is set to agree to enable the LDA to secure additional housing. It is also understood the Cabinet will agree that project level commitments by the LDA would no longer have to be reviewed by NewERA to ensure speed and efficiency. Under the plans, the LDA will now support a wider area of homes delivery beyond the current locations of the LDA remit and seek out and activate additional and strategic public land sites to deliver, such as urban brownfield sites. It will for stronger land transfer powers owned by commercial state bodies, particularly when it comes to underutilised State lands and the LDA will work with Browne's housing activation office in master planning. Policy and legislative changes will now be finalised and a memo will be brought to Government in the near future. It is understood that former HSE Chief Paul Reid is expected to be named as the chairperson of the newly overhauled An Coimisiún Pleanála, which will replace An Bord Pleanála. Higher Education Minister James Lawless will bring the Heads of a Bill to unlock €1.5bn for the National Training Fund. This will see €650m in core funding package for Higher Education (€150m per annum). It will also include €600m capital uplift including €150m to provide training facilities in the areas of Veterinary, Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy and Dentistry, €150m for the upgrading and decarbonisation of the third level estate, €150m capital funding for the Further Education and Training Sector and €150m for research including research infrastructure and an increase in the PhD stipend. The Bill will also contain €235m in one-off current funding for skills and apprenticeships. Social Protection Minister Dara Calleary will bring an amendment to the Bereaved Partners Bill, which will 'tackle economic crime'. It will allow a Social Welfare Inspector or an Authorised Officer from the Department of Social Protection to, at the behest and invitation of An Garda Síochána, participate in the interview of a detained suspect regarding offences under the Social Welfare Act. Minister for Agriculture Martin Heydon will update Cabinet on the first interim report by the Timber in Construction Steering Group. which Minister Michael Healy Rae has also been working on. It recommends that Ireland needs to use more wood in construction and we 'embrace' best practice in countries where timber is the material of choice. It should also look toward a 'Wood First' procurement policy advocating for all publicly procured buildings to be constructed using materials primarily of timber and other bio-based products. Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe will seek approval for committee stage amendments to the Local Property Tax Bill, including one that relates to property adapted for use by disabled persons. This will provide for a reduction of €105,000 in the chargeable value of a property which has been adapted for use by a disabled person, subject to certain criteria being met. This is an increase from €50,000 in the 2012 Act. Taoiseach Micheál Martin, alongside Minister Donohoe and Public Expenditure Minister Jack Chambers, will look to publish the Analysis of Well-Being in Ireland report for 2025, which will be used to help set out priorities for Budget 2026. It uses a dashboard of 35 indicators of well-being divided across 11 sections. The report shows the progress Ireland has made over the past five years, both in terms of the trend and in comparison to international peers. Progress was seen in Income and Wealth; Connections, Community and Participation; and Work and Job Quality. The analysis also identifies areas where work is needed, highlighting that unemployed people, younger workers, people in bad health, single-parent households, lower income households, and renters paying market rates are faring less well than other groups in society. Elsewhere, Tánaiste Simon Harris will outline the preparations underway for Ireland's presidency of the European Union next year. During the presidency term there will be 23 informal Ministerial meetings hosted in Ireland and a quarter of them will be held outside Dublin. There will also be a summit of the European Political Community and an informal meeting of the European Council, both of which will take place in Dublin.
