THE NUMBER OF people in emergency accommodation decreased by 101 last month, reaching 17,447.

According to the latest figures from the Department of Housing on Friday, 11,864 adults and 5,583 children were accessing emergency accommodation in May.

Some 7,346 of those were single households, while 2,684 were family households.

Homelessness levels first passed 17,000 at the start of 2026.

Figures published by the department last month saw a record 17,548 people in emergency accommodation during the month of April, with children making up 5,604 of this figure.

The Dublin Simon Community described it as a “marginal decrease compared to the previous report”.

“The figures underline the continued pressure facing households, with many people experiencing homelessness against a backdrop of high rents, rising living costs and a shortage of affordable housing options,” it added.

Depaul meanwhile remarked that “thousands of children are trapped in emergency accommodation as the summer holidays arrive”.

“As schools all over the country close for the summer – thousands of children face the reality of a summer spent in unsuitable temporary accommodation with no certainty of a home,” said a Depaul spokesperson.

“And their parents face the worry of how they are going to support these children for the next few months.”

“These children are quite literally spending their formative years in homelessness centres.

“We find ourselves once more warning that children in unsuitable, emergency accommodation are being deprived not only of stability, but also of the support they need to thrive and grow.”

New rental rules

There have been a 51% jump in eviction notices issued in the first quarter of this year, which coincided with the government’s sweeping changes to the rental sector from 1 March.

The government’s new rental rules mean that if a property is vacant, the landlord can set the rent at market rates instead of increases being capped at 2%.

The Social Democrats spokesperson on housing, Rory Hearne, today remarked that “the majority of the 250,000 rental households who are not covered by the new measures introduced in March are still at risk of eviction into homelessness”.

“Only corporate landlords and vulture funds are benefiting from government housing policies, not ordinary families, who have been kicked out of their properties in their droves as a result,” added Hearne.

Earlier this week, housing minister James Browne admitted that the government has no estimates for when homeless numbers may fall and if the coalition’s strategy is working.

The Fianna Fáil minister said that it’s “very difficult to model” when homeless numbers will fall, with his preference to put in place a framework to “maximise the delivery of homes” via a range of state-backed schemes.

Meanwhile, Sinn Féin’s housing spokesperson Eoin Ó Broin called on the government to introduce an emergency package of measures to tackle the homeless crisis. 

While the figures released today represent a marginal drop, Ó Broin noted that homelessness has increased by 9% in the last 12 months, with child homelessness up 11% and family homelessness up 18% during the same period.

Elsewhere, Labour’s housing spokesperson Conor Sheehan said the slight decrease is not progress.

He said that the slight reduction is an “anomaly rather than evidence that government housing policy is working”.

He called for urgent action to increase housing supply, tackle rough sleeping and remove barriers facing vulnerable people seeking emergency accommodation.

“The Minister has shown this week that he has effectively given up,” said Sheehan.

“He openly admitted that he is no longer hoping the homelessness figures will come down.

“That is an extraordinary admission from the Minister responsible for housing. People experiencing homelessness deserve leadership and determination, not resignation.”