Eoghan Murphy, the Minister for Housing, is calling for "rent transparency" and for the average rent paid in certain areas to be detailed by the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB).
Currently, the RTB holds records of the level of rent paid by tenants, and the future information published would be based on this data. The register will include information on the average level of rents in specific areas, however; it would not include the exact level of rent paid per individual property. The final information published will follow a consultation with the Data Protection Commissioner and the Attorney General.
Renting regulations are long overdue and the Government plans to make increasing rents by over 4% annually a criminal offense. If landlords increase rent over 4% in "rent pressure zones" annually then the RTB will have the power to bring cases against landlords instead of waiting for tenants to complain.
As well as introducing an online register the proposal will seek to introduce several ways to improve tenants rights. Notice periods for evictions will be increased by a significant amount depending on the overall time the tenant has occupied the property. For tenants living on a property for six months or less a notice of 28 days is required. A tenant living on a property for 6 months to a year will have their notice time increased from 35 days to 90 days.
The bill would look to have tenants living in a property for more than a year and up to five years to be given 120 days notice. It will rise to 120 days for all tenancies between one and five years. Currently, tenants are only given 35 days for every year.
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H/T: The Irish Times
