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GOVERNMENT INTENDS TO increase the rent credit in the next budget, according to Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien.
Speaking to The Journal at the Fianna Fáil Ard Fheis in the RDS this afternoon, the minister said the tax credit is just the starting point.
A €1,000 tax credit for 2022 and 2023 was announced this week as part of the budget.
Details of how to claim the credit have yet to be announced, but it is expected to be claimed on an individual basis (except for married couples and civil partners) and the landlord must be registered with the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB).
A previous tax credit for renters was phased out by 2018.
During this week’s Fianna Fáil parliamentary party meeting, the Taoiseach indicated that the credit was a platform that could be built upon.
O’Brien said his party had “affected a permanent change”, stating that Fianna Fáíl insisted upon that tax credit being reintroduced
“I mean, €1,000 per renter, €500 for 2022 and €500 for 2023. That will make a big difference for a lot of people and I do agree completely with the Taoiseach. That’s our starting position.
“So next year because we’ve made a permanent change, not just a cost-of -living change. We will be looking to see how we can increase that rate into the future. Renters need help, we as a party understand that and this is a significant step towards it,” O’Brien said.
The Taoiseach indicated yesterday that O’Brien will be staying in the housing brief.
The minister said he would be delighted to stay in his portfolio after the Cabinet reshuffle.
Housing charity Threshold said the new credit would provide some level of relief, it is “simply not enough”.
Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald accused Taoiseach Micheál Martin of leaving “the door wide open for more rent hikes, more exploitation, and more hardship”.
“Taoiseach, you have messed this up, and the renters of Ireland deserve more than this half-baked measure,” she said in the Dáil this week.
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The rent credit, while it will help a lot of people for a brief while, doesn’t take into account those who don’t have leases. It also shows that there is a failure of the government to acknowledge the heavy power imbalance in favour of landlords against tenants without a lease. I know many people who fear retribution from their landlord if they ask them to do basic repairs, let alone if they want to register for tax credits for an unregistered house. So many people won’t apply for this because a €1000 tax credit isn’t worth the danger of potentially becoming homeless, or having a permanent rent increase.
@Sylvia Power: The only reason any one would rent a place without a lease is because they have no other options because the rental property supply is so low. The only solution is to increase supply of properties in the rental market. Anything else is piddling in the wind where the wind is blowing right back at you.
@Damon16: While supply is certainly an issue, we also have to talk about the affordability of the available places. Many of the ‘luxury lets’ or available lets on Daft are €1,500 for a 1 bed apartment. I think there are more lettings than we think, but that they’re incredibly unaffordable.
@Sylvia Power: there’s no way to implement this plan without proof of paying rent which would need the landlord to confirm rent is being paid. It’s exactly the same with the SF plan, great for headlines but still eoiod require same info. It’s not a great situation obviously but governments can’t just hand out cash or tax credits to people who say they’re renting without proof.
@Sylvia Power: 1,500 for a 1 bed in Dublin would be a steal in the current market. There are often hundreds of people with above average incomes competing to rent these properties such is the lack of properties available. Even getting so much as a viewing is a major challenge. Calls and emails go unanswered. It’s all about supply.
@Damon16: It is all about supply but to be honest I couldn’t imagine paying €1k + a month to rent a room. Surely you could get a mortgage for that and at least then you would own something in the end. I’m tired of the way the minister etc are trying to deal with this by throwing money at HAP and tenants. If you have 10 people trying to rent 5 units then no matter what money you throw at it the number of units will still only be 5. Build build and build some more.
They will need to give us at least 12,000 euro rent credit per year to even start undoing the damage they’ve inflicted on renters the last few years. They can go and thouroughly effe themselves with a cattle prod.
How about a mortgage credit?
@Susan Keane: Just be glad you have one. Unless you’re paying €1,400 per month on it.
Govt handouts are not going to help as long as landlords can use housing as a monthly handout. Even a landlord in the comments this week said he made 16k in profit, after all bills being paid (ie. free house paid by the tenant).
That’s hard earned wages from workers being handed to a landlord. Workers paying for someone else’s mortgage. Such a system needs to change. There has never been a better time for the resurgence of a Land League.
And landlords only need to pay taxes on *profits*. They get to write off expenses, while workers pay full tax. Yet landlords complain about paying taxes (with someone else’s money). https://www.revenue.ie/en/property/rental-income/irish-rental-income/what-expenses-are-not-allowed.aspx
@Dean: doubt that but keep going with it
@Dean: not profits all the income the recieve
“So many people won’t apply for this because a €1000 tax credit isn’t worth the danger of potentially becoming homeless, or having a permanent rent increase.”
You could not make this up.
People are affraid to claim what they are entitled to.
This is only possible in Ireland. F me what a kip.
They need to create some kind of panel of experts to advise how to increase the supply of rental and other properties as quickly as possible and implement their recommendations quickly. NIMBY concerns need to be overridden as this is a national emergency. All the attention seems to be on treating the symptom (high rent) rather than curing the disease (not enough housing supply). Demand side solutions like rent credits are only going to inflate rents further. Take a quick look on daft and see how limited the options currently are for people looking to rent.
Does anyone notice that half the revenues from rental income is taxed and goes to the government. Laws are made by politicians and senior civil servants with gold plated pensions. They are not made by the large cohort of small private landlords that want to provide a good service if they make it work as a long term investment plan.
There are no incentives for well intentioned a long term landlord with an affordable existing tenancy from a tax point of view. Especially to use it as a pension if they have no other form of pension. Better tax treatment was discussed coming up to the budget and not considered. So the exodus of landlords and a resulting shortage of rental properties will probably continue.
Instead, the law actually favors landlords sell up and buy something else to get better rents and tax treatment if they want. This favours estate agents, lawyers, conveying work that gain from property transactions, rather than long term tenancies.
100% mortgage is the answer. Most people are paying up to €1600 for one or two bed, they could be paying off a mortgage instead. This government has no vision.
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