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HOUSING MINISTER SIMON Coveney has welcomed the news that termination notices served on residents of The Strand apartments in Limerick City are to be withdrawn.
People had been facing eviction after the property was bought by a vulture fund.
The Housing Department said Sova Properties is writing to the residents affected to confirm the notices are being withdrawn and that they will abide by the spirit of the so-called Tyrrelstown amendment which comes into effect next week.
That amendment to the Residential Tenancies Act was brought through the Oireachtas in December as part of the government’s rental strategy. The effect of the provision is to require that tenancies are protected where a landlord or investor wishes to sell more than 10 properties in a single development, as happened at Tyrrelstown, Dublin 15, last year.
Speaking today, Coveney said the decision to withdraw the notices is “an important reassurance for households who had been facing significant uncertainty”.
There was no legal requirement for Sova to take this approach so I commend them for doing what was the socially responsible thing by respecting the will of the government and the Oireachtas.
“This shows the value already of some of the measures contained in the government’s strategy for the rental sector and the importance of a partnership approach by all players; tenants, accommodation providers and government,” the minister said.
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Where did this fool finds a way to congratulate the tenants who were totally powerless by this government and thrown to the vulture in another system that they have allowed absentee landlords with gusto. They should be chased out of this country not simply out of politics and all current politicians should be thrown out with them. This is good news for these tenants but there is nothing these vulture funds have no compassion, there is something for them somewhere for them.
@Jho Harris: you hit the point right on the nail!
Don’t usually subscribe to what your saying,but after seeing the RTÉ documentary on RTÉ about vulture funds during the week I wholeheartedly agree with you they are absolute filth and we have been sold out by this government
Covering there own holes as usual
Good news.
@sineadgill: in just one case but our Landlord and Tenant laws remain grossly inadequate.
Yes inadequate to the landlord.
Just goes to show that when politicians actually achieve something, they will still receive nothing but cynicism and vitriol
@neal not Neil-a broken clock is even right twice a day
A question for Mr Coveney & Mr Noonan… Mortage interest rates in Ireland are double the european average WHY?????
Because it’s so difficult to repossess a house in Ireland for one.
FG are on the ropes as regards homelessness… and I’m delighted for one
@Tony Skillington: I would prefer that there was no housing crisis but I think that the blame lies with FF, FG and Labour.
@Tony Daly…I stand corrected…quiet rightly
Said the man in the orthopaedic shoes
The housing and homeless crisis are in scale, severity and harshness of consequence even a greater scandal than the cynical exercise of water charges.
The big problem is that our Landlord and Tenant laws in Ireland are insufficiently protective of the rights of tenants.
In the late 19th century, agricultural tenants received the benefit of fixity of tenure, fair rent and free sale. These reforms resulted from the activities of the Land League. Eventually, agricultural tenants obtained the right to buy our the freehold and to own their farms.
Urban residential tenants have very limited legal protection.
There are huge storm clouds gathering. 25,000 mortgagors of family homes in arrears are facing repossession. About 15,000 buy to lets are facing repossession and eviction of the tenants on change of ownership. There are many vulture funds looking at implementing eject of tenants for sale with vacant possession purposes.
Rents continue to climb and are becoming increasingly unaffordable.
It’s all bad news ahead for residential tenants and for distressed mortgagors.
Michael must have rang his friends, made other bargains with them
They didn’t do it out of the goodness of their hearts anyway that’s for sure.
@jane: a tactical softening and only for now.
They might have Jane. The roll is against landlords, at least 500 were affected by their letters, 500 people are reassured today.
I don’t know Jenni, I don’t know much about the whole thing but from what I saw on that rte program during the week they are ruthless in their pursuit of profit.
Every landlord is pursuing a profit ..That’s the nature and that’s why they become landlords. But in this case, and I have no idea if they have motive, but it seems like a decent thing to do. They have a lot of tenants, all young , it seems decent so let’s hope it is. A decent landlord at last. Wouldn’t that be a first.
They shouldn’t have sold to these vulture funds in the first place but if our gov was any good, they should have made agreements with the funds that people shouldn’t be evicted, and Coveney is doing nothing to address this even now, but he’ll make an effort to do something only when people start making an issue of it, which is disgraceful behavior.
“Sell more than 10 houses”. Shouldn’t be too hard for the vulture funds to find a way around that.
Simon Coveney welcomes the news.
Wonderful given that he washed his hands of the tenants plight last week and said the government could not interfere as the legislation could not be applied retrospectively.
Difficult to figure out who he resembles more
Pontius Pilate or Nero.
I wouldn’t compare him to anybody. He’s just a useless, waste of space, donkey trying to act as a politician.
What’s sold is eventually going to be claimed. Fg sold their souls, well the Irish people’s and auld nick is gonna come for whats now is his. Shame on FF FG LIEBOUR. …
Vulture capital is essentially no different to other forms of capital. There is no such thing as good and bad capital. All capital is based on exploitation of labour. It is profit driven.
Throwing workers out of work because of factory closures or rationalisation is no better than vulture capitalists throwing tenants out of apartments. Their actions are profit driven.
The Strand apartments in Limerick City…these seem to part of the Hotel…I always thought these were holiday apartments, never thought there were permanent residents.
Probably the best apartments in Limerick other than in Riverpoint. I wonder how much this vulture find paid for these apartments, all facilitated by Limericks favourite son, Noonan!
Yep, I done some work in those apartments. Really nice and well built. It would be interesting to know how much they paid alright.
It’s not right . What is possible to counteract?
Well done to sova properties. I hope others follow suit.
@Gerry Fallen: don’t be gullible. They will sell off the apartments on batches of 10 to get around the restrictions. The tennants will find themselves evicted regardless…
How?
The Tyrellstown ruling only applies over 10 properties. These are apartments. They just sell in blocks of 10.
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