Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Tuesday, 15 October 2019

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government

Residential Tenancies Board: Chairperson Designate

Mr. Tom Dunne:

Luckily, I am of a generation of people who tended to move away from home and into their own accommodation. I was lucky to be able to do that. I was never a tenant.

Members of my family are tenants. I recently accompanied my son to London to try to find accommodation for him because he is doing a master's degree over there. I had an interesting experience marching around London and looking for accommodation. He is now paying rent. That is my nearest emotional engagement with being a tenant.

I have never been a landlord. Going back to what I was said earlier, despite my engagement in the property business, one thing I learned early on was that being a landlord is not for the faint-hearted. I am not sure if I want to be a landlord or not. I made the decision not to be. In the property business, one can see when property values are going to go up and there were times when many fellas told me to get involved and buy something. I chose not to.