Skip to main content
Normal View

Housing Schemes

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 12 October 2021

Tuesday, 12 October 2021

Questions (176)

Richard Boyd Barrett

Question:

176. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he has plans to deal with the growing problem of persons on HAP receiving rent increases in cases in which their HAP payments remain fixed and they are required to make top-up payments but cannot afford them, particularly social welfare recipients; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49399/21]

View answer

Written answers

The Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) is a form of social housing support for people who have a long-term housing need. If a household has been deemed eligible for social housing support, it is a matter for the local authority to examine the suite of social housing supports available, including the HAP scheme, to determine the most appropriate form of social housing support for that household in the administrative area of that local authority.

Each local authority has statutory discretion to agree to a HAP payment up to 20% above the prescribed maximum rent limit to secure appropriate accommodation for a household that requires it, or up to 50% in the case of homeless households in the Dublin region. It is a matter for the local authority to determine, on a case by case basis, whether, and to what extent, the application of the flexibility is warranted.

While there is no legislative provision precluding HAP supported households contributing towards the monthly rent required by the landlord, local authorities have a responsibility to ensure that tenancies are sustainable and that households in HAP are in a position to meet the rental costs involved.

My Department closely monitors the level of discretion being used by local authorities, taking into account other sources of data, including Residential Tenancies Board rent data published on a quarterly basis. It is considered that the current maximum rent limits, together with the additional flexibility available to local authorities, are generally adequate to support the effective operation of the HAP scheme.

The Programme for Government commits to ensuring that HAP levels are adequate to support vulnerable households, while we increase the supply of social housing. My Department continues to keep the operation of the HAP scheme under review. Under Housing for All, my Department will undertake an analytical exercise to examine whether an increase in the level of discretion available to Local Authorities under HAP is required, in order to maintain adequate levels of HAP support.

Finally, the Planning and Development (Housing) and Residential Tenancies Act 2016 introduced a targeted rent increase restriction of 4% per annum in Rent Pressure Zones (RPZs), having regard to the constitutionally protected property rights of landlords and local rental market factors. The aim was to provide rent certainty to tenants and landlords by moderating medium-term rent levels.

The Residential Tenancies (No. 2) Act 2021 introduced measures in July 2021 to better protect tenants with affordability challenges by extending the operation of RPZs until the end of 2024 and prohibiting any necessary rent increase in a RPZ from exceeding general inflation, as recorded by the Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP). This measure significantly reduces the level of permissible rent increases for the estimated 74% of all tenancies which are in RPZs. The linkage with HICP aims to safeguard continued investment in the sector by existing and new landlords to deliver the much needed supply of high-quality rental accommodation while protecting against a significant increase in rental inflation in the coming years.

When introducing these measures, I was very clear on the need to carefully monitor inflation. At that time, HICP inflation averaged 0.73% p.a. over the previous 3 years but had risen to 1.6% p.a. in the year ending June 2021. I needed to revise the RPZ rent control relatively quickly in July, on a basis that could be independently verified. The Residential Tenancies (No. 2) Act 2021 also provides that an index, other than HICP, may be prescribed for the purposes of restricting rent increases in RPZs. Given the continuing rise in HICP inflation, up to 3% p.a. in August, I will consider all the legal options available to me to ensure that effective rent controls are legally in force in RPZs to cap the rate of any rent increase where the general inflation rate is too high. Any necessary provision relating to rent control in RPZs will be considered in the context of the impending Housing and Residential Tenancies Bill 2021. My Department is currently examining this matter and the advices of the Office of the Attorney General will inform any changes in this area.

The Residential Tenancies (No. 2) Act 2021 also provides that rent reviews outside of RPZs can, until 2025, occur no more frequently than bi-annually. It remains the position that rent reviews in RPZs can occur no more frequently than annually. The most vulnerable tenants, impacted by Covid-19, also continue to be legally protected from rent increases and eviction under the Planning and Development, and Residential Tenancies, Act 2020.

Top
Share