Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Tuesday, 15 July 2025

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage

Issues Facing the Residential Rental Sector: Discussion

2:00 am

Ms Ann-Marie O'Reilly:

That is a possibility. I was working in homeless services when we started to see issues arising. At the time, there were economic evictions. Rents were legally increased, and people could not afford them. What we might have is a situation where people have to move, for whatever reason, and they enter into tenancies where the rent is already high. They will probably struggle to pay it from the beginning and, eventually, they will possibly will fall into arrears and lose their homes. As it is, there are people, particularly at the lower end of the market, who are struggling to pay.