Brendan Griffin (Kerry, Fine Gael)
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379. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government if the position of tenants in housing association properties is now disimproved by the application of the Residential Tenancies Acts to their tenancies; if these tenants have to go through probationary periods again; and the circumstances in which such tenancies can now be ended.

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The Residential Tenancies (Amendment) Act 2015 amended section 3 of the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 so that dwellings let by approved housing bodies (AHBs) to social housing tenants now come within the remit of the Act. The position of these tenants is significantly improved by the change, which commenced on 7 April 2016, as they now benefit from the following:

-Increased security of tenure;

- Access to Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) dispute resolution procedures, including free mediation;

- Binding obligations on AHBs as landlords to, inter alia, register all tenancies, keep dwellings in good repair and allow peaceful occupation.

AHB tenants will automatically gain these rights under Part IV of the Act 6 months after registration of their tenancy with the RTB.

The Act provides that tenancies may only be terminated in cases where:

- A tenant is non-compliant with their obligations;

- A landlord wishes to sell the property or requires the property for their own use of use by a family member;

- A landlord wishes to refurbish the property;

- A landlord wishes to change the use of the dwelling.

AHB tenants also benefit from amendments introduced under the 2015 Act to significantly strengthen the protections around tenancy terminations by placing strict controls on the process by which a tenancy can be terminated. These measures involve, inter alia:

- A landlord having to explain in a written statement to the tenant why a property might no longer be suitable to their accommodation needs having regard to the number of bed-spaces and the size and composition of the household; and,

- A landlord having to make a statutory declaration as to their intention to sell a property.

Moreover, tenancies may be terminated only by means of a formal noticeof termination, regardless of why the termination is happening. The 2015 Act also increased the notice period for termination so that a landlord will now have to give a tenant up to a maximum of 224 days notice for tenancies of 8 years or more.