Labour housing spokesperson Conor Sheehan TD: ‘Private rental market is fundamentally broken’

Policy can be reactive and proactive and successive governments’ policy on the regulation of the private rental market has been hurriedly developed in order to attempt to stymy a runaway train of soaring rents and contracting supply, writes Labour Party spokesperson on housing, Conor Sheehan TD.

Reactive policy making process has led us to a situation where we have record rents, unprecedented demand, and a chronic lack of supply. The challenges in the private rental market cannot be considered or solved in isolation. They must be considered in the context of the shortage of all forms of housing and in particular the lack of an adequate supply of social and affordable housing.

Fortunately for government, The Housing Commission’s report – which it continues to ignore – has set out a blueprint as to how government can begin to tackle this. A key recommendation from The Housing Commission is that social and cost rental housing should constitute 20 per cent of the total housing stock. Social and cost rental housing currently makes up between 9 per cent and 20 per cent of all housing stock.

This is essential for a well-functioning housing system and rental market and government should strive to achieve this target within the lifetime of its forthcoming housing plan. An increased supply of social and cost rental homes is essential to provide options for many in the private rental sector who need this type of accommodation.

The private rental market in Ireland is associated with high levels of precarity. The average length of a tenancy varies across the European Union but in countries with strong tenant rights and a stable, well-regulated rental market, such as Belgium and Germany, it averages at nine and 11 years respectively. The average length of a tenancy in Ireland is around three years and Irish people pay between 30 per cent and 35 per cent of their net income on rent. The EU average is 20 per cent.

Reactive policies from successive governments to regulate the private rental market have failed as rents have risen each quarter for more than a decade and the average rent has moved above €2,000 for the first time.

Therefore, if you consider rent pressure zones in light of consistently increasing rents and contracting supply, they have failed as a policy measure. The latest changes to rent pressure zones involving a blanket extension to the whole country with the exception of new build apartments and the changes permitting landlords to reset the rent in-between tenancies will not address rising rents.

Instead, government will be forced to return to the issue of rent setting within the lifetime of this government with yet another reactive policy measure.

The system of reference rents which would set rent limits based on factors such as property size, local and quality as recommended by The Housing Commission deserves serious consideration. In fact, my predecessor as Labour Housing Spokesperson, Jan O’Sullivan, introduced a Bill in 2016 calling for the introduction of such a system.

“The private rental market is fundamentally broken, and a tinkering of the existing failed policy levers will not repair it.”

Labour Party spokesperson on housing Conor Sheehan TD

It seems as if there is huge institutional resistance to such a system within the Custom House which would allow landlords charge an evidence-based market rent and see tenants pay a fair and proportional rent for their property.

In 2021, Labour Party leader Ivana Bacik TD introduced the Residential Tenancies (Tenants’ Rights) Bill 2021. This Bill would have restricted the grounds on which a landlord can terminate a tenancy. It would have abolished so-called ‘no fault’ evictions, and it would have stopped landlords from evicting tenants because they intend to sell the property. It would also have ensured that tenants are only evicted for renovations when necessary.

This Bill also tackled rent transparency, ending the practice of landlords demanding more than one month’s rent for deposits and declaring the entire State a rent pressure zone. We wanted to make sure that renters could see exactly what rent was paid by previous tenants and what, if any, refurbishments had been carried out to justify rent increases.

This Bill also aimed to raise the quality of rental accommodation by bringing rental laws into the 21st century. It would have introduced model tenancy agreements, which would have stopped landlords from imposing unreasonable restrictions like banning clothes drying in outdoor spaces or prohibiting pets. It would have given tenants the right to opt for unfurnished homes, allowing them to create a long-term home, which is particularly vital for families.

Labour would use our 2021 Renters Rights Bill as a starting basis for sustainable long-term regulation of the private rental sector to bring us in line with our European counterparts. We would then seek to transition the regulation of the private rental market to a long-term sustainable system that safeguards tenants and guarantees stability.

To reject this as a viable option on the grounds of cost and complexity is simply not good enough. The private rental market is fundamentally broken, and a tinkering of the existing failed policy levers will not repair it.

There is also a clear need to reform the Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) and Rental Accommodation Scheme (RAS) system. HAP rates have not increased since their introduction despite an unprecedented increase in rents in the last decade.

Labour believes that we must immediately implement the core of our 2021 Renters’ Rights Bill and to transition to a sustainable functioning system to regulate the private rental market.

This must start with the publication of a rent register, so tenants know the history of the rent charged on their property. We believe that the system of reference rents as proposed by The Housing Commission devised in way that addresses affordability deserves serious consideration and not a blanket dismissal.

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Conor Sheehan TD is the Labour Party’s spokesperson for housing. He was first elected to the Dáil in November 2024, representing the Limerick City constituency.