Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, Anti-Austerity Alliance)
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48. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government his views on the advertisement of NAMA rental properties for sale on the basis of the potential for large rent increases and reports that a bank (details supplied) intends to sell off up to €1.9 billion in distressed buy-to-let mortgages to vulture funds, in view of the impact this could have on tenants; and if he has raised cross cutting issues that affect housing such as this with the Minister for Finance, including at the Cabinet sub committee on housing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35429/16]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The Residential Tenancies Act 2004, as amended by the Residential Tenancies (Amendment) Act 2015, regulates the landlord-tenant relationship in the private rented sector and sets out the rights and obligations of landlords and tenants.

The Residential Tenancies Act provides that rents may not be greater than the open market rate and may only be reviewed upward or downward every 24 months unless there has been a substantial change in the nature of the accommodation that warrants a review. Tenants must be given 90 days’ notice of new rent and can make an application for dispute resolution to the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) where they feel the rent increase is in excess of the market rent. These provisions have effect notwithstanding any provision to the contrary in a lease or tenancy agreement and where a property is sold subject to an existing tenancy, the tenant retains their rights under the Act.

While the circumstances of each case may vary depending on the terms of the mortgage or charge under which a receiver is appointed, the appointment of a receiver cannot affect the statutory or contractual rights of tenants under the Act.

Pillar 4 of the Rebuilding Ireland Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness, commits to developing a comprehensive strategy for the rental sector in Q4 2016. The strategy will lay out measures to address immediate issues affecting the supply, cost and accessibility of accommodation. In particular, the strategy will consider measures to increase security of tenure and in relation to rents; there will also be a focus on maintaining existing levels of rental stock and encouraging investment in additional supply. The strategy will provide a vision of the role that the rental sector will play in the short, medium and long term, in the context of the Government’s overall objectives for the housing sector.

Some of the measures in the rental strategy will require supporting amendments to be made to the Residential Tenancies Act. However, other legislative changes are being accelerated for early enactment in the Planning and Development (Housing) and Residential Tenancies Bill 2016 which commenced Second Stage in the Seanad yesterday. The Bill includes measures to prevent a future recurrence of situations where large numbers of residents in a single development are simultaneously served with termination notices to facilitate vacant possession and sale of the property. These are accompanied by a number of other early actions to enhance the Residential Tenancies Board’s (RTB) enforcement and dispute resolution powers. Tenants and landlords alike will therefore see a number of improvements as a result of these legislative changes.

The Cabinet Committee on Housing, chaired by An Taoiseach, is overseeing the implementation of all actions under Rebuilding Ireland, including the development of the rental strategy, and it meets regularly to review progress. Cross-cutting issues which affect the housing market and the rental market are considered by this Committee, of which the Minister for Finance is also a member.

The overarching objective of the strategy will be to retain existing rental stock in the sector, increase supply and support the development of a stable, strong and viable rental sector offering true choice for households, investment opportunities for providers and reflecting the rights and responsibilities of tenants and landlords.