Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 18 April 2023
828. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he will provide his response to calls for a public body (details supplied) to establish a dedicated investigation unit to identify unregistered, privately rented properties; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17704/23]
View answer835. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if consideration will be given to providing additional funding to the RTB in order to fund an active investigations unit, in order that the organisation may strengthen investigations into non-compliant landlords in the private market; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17761/23]
View answer857. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the steps he is taking to ensure that all landlords are registered with the Residential Tenancies Board. [18177/23]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 828, 835 and 857 together.
The Residential Tenancies Board, or RTB, was established as a quasi-judicial independent statutory body under the Residential Tenancies Acts 2004-2022 to regulate the rental sector; provide information to tenants and landlords; maintain a national register of tenancies; resolve disputes between tenants and landlords; and conduct research and provide information to inform policy. Registered landlords and all tenants can apply to the RTB for dispute resolution.
Section 134 of the Acts requires a landlord to apply to the RTB to register a tenancy of a dwelling within one month of its commencement. All private landlords, Approved Housing Bodies and providers of Student Specific Accommodation are required to register their tenancies with the RTB. Managing the registration of tenancies is a core function of the RTB. This allows the RTB to collect and provide definitive data on the rental sector and for transparency across the rental sector through the public register of tenancies; thus, enabling a better understanding of the sector.
Non-compliance with the requirement to register a tenancy is dealt with by two processes in the RTB, the Registration Enforcement Process or the Investigations and Sanctions Process.
The RTB has registration enforcement powers to pursue landlords who have not complied with their obligation to register their tenancies. Failure to register is an offence which may result in a criminal conviction, a fine of up to €4,000 and/or up to six months imprisonment. The RTB makes every effort to inform landlords of their obligations to register and legal action is taken as a last resort. The RTB, receives information from different sources regarding whether a tenancy is registered or not, including local authorities, members of the public, RTB checks and follow-ups and the Department of Social Protection.
Since 2019, the RTB also has an Investigations and Sanctions unit dedicated to investigating certain potential breaches of rental law by a landlord referred to as improper conduct under Schedule 2 to the Acts. One of the breaches that can be investigated is a failure to register a tenancy with the RTB within one month of the tenancy commencing. The Investigations and Sanctions Unit can start an investigation either as a result of information received from members of the public or as a result of information gathered from records that the RTB has access to under the Residential Tenancies Acts. If a landlord is found to have engaged in improper conduct, a sanction may be imposed on them by an independent Decision maker which may comprise one or all of the following: a written caution, a monetary sanction of €15,000 and €15,000 in costs.
Following recommendations in the RTB Workforce Plan (2018 – 2021) and engagement with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, the RTB received sanction for significant additional staff over the past three years and my Department continues to work with the RTB to ensure it is sufficiently resourced to deliver on its mandate. To this end, additional funding of €2.352M is being provided to the RTB for 2023, bringing its total allocation to €13.370M
My Department will continue to work with the RTB to ensure it is sufficiently resourced to deliver on its mandate, including the registration of tenancies.
