Opposition criticises rent control plans as ‘recipe for rocketing rents’

Opposition politicians have criticised the Government’s plans to impose rent controls as a “recipe for rocketing rents” and labelled it a “sweetheart” deal for investment firms.

Three opposition politicians raised a line in a Department of Housing press release that said landlords can increase rents to the market rate after six years of any tenancies created from March 1 2026.

It said: “All landlords will have the right to reset rent where the rent is below market at the end of each six-year tenancy, unless a ‘no-fault eviction’ occurs.”

Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald said the proposed 2% nationwide rent cap was an attempt to “hide your blushes” as landlords can “hike up rents” now and in the future.

She said allowing landlords to reset rent to full market rate every six years was “the death knell” of Rent Pressure Zones (RPZs).

She said plans to restrict rent increases except in cases where renters leave tenancies voluntarily, would see one renter replaced by another whose rent will have “ballooned”.

“Students will be amongst the first hit by your actions. Finding affordable rental accommodation has been a constant struggle for students and their families, but you are now ensuring that this will be even harder.

She said the plan would see investment funds build expensive rental properties and charge “extortionate” rent.

“Your first major action in housing is to enable big landlords to hike up extortionate rents even further,” she said.

“At a time when government should be acting to cut rents and to ban rent increases, at a time when people across the state fork out on average new rent of 2,000 euros a month – here in Dublin, of course, rent can hit 3,000 euros per month or even higher – but instead, you create a new opportunity for tens of thousands of landlords to jack up their rents.”

Labour leader Ivana Bacik said the Government had performed a “screeching U-turn” on RPZs.

She said the RPZs scheme had been called into question before, and was now being extended nationwide.

“So perhaps we should start calling you the Grand Old Duke of Cork, because you led your men up to the top of the hill before marching them all the way back down again. And it’s just a mercy, I suppose, that they weren’t sent over the top – a mercy for renters.”

She said the “panicked announcement” was sowing fear among renters and uncertainty among investors.

“You’re extending the RPZ, sure, but if you’re hollowing out what is meant by an RPZ, if you’re reducing protection to those within RPZs then that doesn’t have the desired effect.”

Social Democrats deputy leader Cian O’Callaghan said that according to the line in the press release, renters will face “astronomical rent increases they cannot afford every six years”.

“You’re throwing renters under the bus. Incredibly, you’re planning even more favourable treatment for vulture funds than already exists.

“They currently pay almost no tax, they charge some of the highest rents in the country, and now, when it comes to rent regulation, you’re rolling over to them yet again.

“So Taoiseach, who is in charge here? Is it the Government, or is it the vulture funds?”

People Before Profit TD Paul Murphy said the Taoiseach had been asked the same question three times about the line in the Department of Housing press release.

He said that rents being “reset” to the market rate when a tenant leaves a tenancy was “a recipe for rocketing rents”.

“Not just new landlords, not just big landlords, not just small landlords, every single landlord, which means existing tenants, new tenants – yes, please, if the minister could inform the Taoiseach of what’s going on here, what’s in the policy, that’d be very, very helpful.

“So what you’re saying to existing, new tenants – all of them – is they get the limited protection of the 2%, or (inflation) if it’s new, for six years. At six years, it’s a free-for-all. They get to reset to market rate.

Taoiseach Micheal Martin said he was accused of getting rid of RPZs months ago, when “it was never, ever contemplated to end RPZs”.

“What is now emerging are probably the strongest set of rent protection measures we’ve ever had in the history of the state.”

Responding to the criticism of the line in the press release, the Taoiseach suggested the plan does include a provision for when a renter voluntarily leaves that rents can be rematched to the market rate.

“Forget all the noise, the sound and the fury, and go through it detail by detail. This is a well-balanced package.”

He said the State is the lead investor in housing in Ireland, contributing more than seven billion euro a year, but the Department of Housing said that around 20 billion euro is needed to get to 50,000 houses a year.

“Now, where do people think we’re going to get to 20 billion from?

“I don’t believe you can replace all of it by 100% state either constructive housing, state rental housing or whatever.”