If you are currently renting and in a tenancy, the new rules will not apply.

Tenancies created before 1 March date will not be affected.

There are no changes to a landlord’s or a tenant’s rights and responsibilities in an existing tenancy but the landlord will still have the right to end a tenancy in line with the current provisions of the Residential Tenancies Acts 2004.

If you are currently renting, there is no 6-year rent resetting option open to your landlord while you remain in that tenancy. 

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I will be entering into a tenancy after 1 March, what does it mean for me? 

The Bill provides that landlords will be able to reset rents to ‘market rent’ for new tenancies created on or after 1 March 2026.

After the initial rent is set, landlords will only be allowed to reset rents every six years.

The only way the landlord can reset the rent before the six years is when a tenant leaves of their own volition or where a tenant has breached their tenant obligations or where the dwelling is no longer suitable to the accommodation needs of the tenant household.

Renters who sign up to a new tenancy will have tenancy security for the first six years, meaning they cannot be evicted unless there has been a genuine breach to the rental agreement.

Again, the new rules will not apply to existing tenants who are currently already renting.

Smaller landlords (with 3 or fewer tenancies) will be allowed to terminate a tenancy during the 6-year term, if financial or other hardships requires the landlord to sell up or if the landlord or a close family member needs to live in the property.

How are rent prices set? 

For new tenancies from 1 March 2026, all landlords will be able to set rent at ‘market rates’ if the previous rent was below market level and the previous tenant left voluntarily or breached their tenant obligations.

The government hasn’t really explained how ‘market rent’ in an area is determined, with opposition TDs stating it essentially allows landlord sets the rents for new tenancies at whatever price they see fit. 

However, government representatives say this is where the new rent register will prove helpful (more on that later). 

After the initial rent rest, the following rent increase will be capped at the rate of inflation according to CPI or 2%, whichever is lower.

For new build apartments and student-specific accommodation, from 1 March 2026, the 2% cap on annual rent increases will not apply. 

For existing tenancies (in place on 28 February 2026), rent increases will be capped at the rate of inflation according to CPI or 2%, whichever is lower.

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Where is the long talked about rent register? 

The Bill provides for the publication of a Rent Price Register, which the government said will provide greater transparency in rental prices for tenants, landlords and other stakeholders. 

Housing Minister James Browne has said it is an important and necessary source of information for the sector, particularly when setting and reviewing rents. 

The Department of Housing has confirmed that the rent register will be up and running on 1 March. 

Landlords will be expected to self-assess whether rents they set truly reflect market rates under the Government’s rental reforms.

Under the legislation, market rent will need to have regard to similar properties with similar characteristics, size, energy rating, and the local electoral area.

This information will be contained on a new national rent register maintained by the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) and will involve self-assessment from landlords.

The measure is likely to lead to a series of disputes for the RTB following queries from prospective tenants and the board’s own investigations.

However, it is not envisaged that the rent register system itself will automatically flag a rent inputted by a landlord that is an outlier to market rates.

It is understood there will be potential fines for landlords for “improper behaviour” in misusing the rent register.

Housing Minister James Browne. Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

Why are the government doing this? 

The Opposition disagree with government.

Sinn Féin’s housing spokesperson Eoin Ó Broin said the legislation was “terrible” and will only lead to higher rents, given that landlords will be able to increase rents to market rates between tenancies or every six years.

He said the new measures will hit student renters particularly hard, as they tend to only rent on a yearly basis, leaving their tenancy after one year, allowing the landlord to reset the rent for that property.

“We are going to fight this bill tooth and nail, because renters have had enough and they simply can’t take any more,” he said.

Ó Broin also argued that the new legislation will introduce too much complexity into the sector by imposing different rules on different landlords, depending on how many properties they own.

He said the new rules are “incredibly confusing”, and will be “virtually impossible to enforce”.

“And why has James Brown done this? Because this is what the big institutional investors have asked for. They want a market reset. That’s what they’ve got. Everything else is window dressing. It’s actually going to make things worse, not better, and that’s where we’re going to oppose this legislation,” the Dublin Mid-West TD said.

Mary Lou McDonald said the bill was written for vulture funds and investment funds who are looking to rip-off renters. She said the rent will increase for new tenants and in time, all tenants, as they leave and enter into new tenancies.