The Irish Property Owners’ Association (IPOA ), the national landlords association, accepts and understands the need to protect vulnerable tenants who meet the self-declaration criteria.
However, there is also a need to protect the providers of accommodation. The IPOA are calling for fair play for landlords in cases where rent arrears are not discharged.
“In cases where tenants have been protected at the expense of their landlord and the rent arrears are not repaid, IPOA are calling for the landlord to be allowed to offset the arrears as an expense in their tax return reducing the financial cost to the landlord. This would help vulnerable tenants and landlords. The Residential Tenancies and Valuations Act protects non-paying tenants without protecting the providers of accommodation. This is not fair or equitable. There is emergency assistance for tenants whose income has been reduced but none for landlords. It is unsurprising that 3800 landlords left the sector in 2020, reducing the number of tenancies by 4800. The role of the private rental sector is essential in the provision of housing and should not be contracting,” Stephen Faughnan, Chairperson, IPOA, stated.
