We need your help now
Support from readers like you keeps The Journal open.
You are visiting us because we have something you value. Independent, unbiased news that tells the truth. Advertising revenue goes some way to support our mission, but this year it has not been enough.
If you've seen value in our reporting, please contribute what you can, so we can continue to produce accurate and meaningful journalism. For everyone who needs it.
Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
By continuing, you are indicating that you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
LAST UPDATE | 22 Oct 2024
ONLY 33 RENTAL properties are currently possible to access with the Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) discretionary rate in 16 surveyed local authority areas.
The Simon Communities of Ireland’s quarterly Locked Out of the Market report for October 2024 shows 33 properties were available to rent within the discretionary HAP rate, marking a fall of 23% since June.
In 12 of the 16 areas, there were no properties available to rent within either the standard or discretionary HAP limits.
The surveyed areas with no HAP-qualified properties were Athlone, Cork City Centre, Cork City Suburbs, Dundalk, Galway City Suburbs, Galway City Centre, Co. Leitrim, Limerick City Suburbs, Limerick City Centre, Sligo Town, Portlaoise and Waterford City Centre.
25 (76%) of the total 33 HAP properties were found in local authority areas in Dublin.
Only two properties were available to “single person/couple” households without children through a standard HAP rate – one in Dublin City South and one in Dublin City North. There were another eight properties available for single person/couple households within discretionary HAP limits, which were located in Dublin City North (six properties), Dublin City South (one property) and Dublin City Centre (one property).
There were no properties available to couple/one parent households with one child through a standard HAP rate and just 16 properties available through discretionary HAP rates, almost all of which were in Dublin except for two in Kildare.
For couple/one parent households with two children, there was only one property available at the standard HAP rate (in Dublin City Centre) and 22 properties through discretionary HAP rates, 16 of which overlapped with properties available to families with one child. The other six properties were in Dublin City North (one), Dublin City South (three ), Dublin City Centre (one) and Kildare (one).
Executive Director at the Simon Communities of Ireland Wayne Stanley described the situation as a “continuation of the picture we have been seeing for a number of years now.”
“For those reliant on a HAP payment, there is very few opportunities to secure a home, unless you have additional income to top up the payment,” Stanley outlined, adding that that families and individuals are spending longer in homelessness as a result.
“We are all witnessing the consequences in the monthly growth in the number of men, women and children in homeless emergency accommodation,” he said.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
remind me again why the tax payer is footing the bill for peoples rent in the private rental market?
@Niall English: so that people aren’t homeless, sorry roofless.
@Niall English: As they gave up building Council Estates and sold off the existing Council housing on the cheap years ago.
@Mark R: are they not able to pay the rent themselves, work just like everyone else? why should the tax payer be footing their bill?
@Niall English: that’s a silly comment. Not everyone can work for various reasons.
@Niall English: the demand is increasing for social housing yet again. As those who would be considered to be on good salary are now pushed out of affording a home which leaves no hope for those who earn low salaries its sickening that they have destroyed peoples futures with greed and incompetence.
@Niall English: Most of them can for HAP. Rent for everyone in the country would be cheaper if the Government did not pay HAP. All our current problems stem from Government manipulation of the market:
- Banning Bedsits, which took the bottom rung from the property ladder.
- One way rent controls, forcing landlords to always aim high and increase rents each year.
- Very hard to evict, so people no longer rent properties. Better to leave them empty and they are in real trouble they get a problem tenant.
- 6 Months full rights, Closed off the short term letting market. Going abroad for a few months/year, let out your house while away. Not a chance, you will come back and be homeless as tenants can decide to stay indefinitely.
@Niall English: HAP is for working people, available up to €40k net wages. It’s not a handout payment like rent allowance. The reality is that people earning €40k a year are still struggling to pay hyper-inflated rental costs.
@Niall English: A lot of HAP recipients work, if you earn under a certain amount you too would be able to avail of HAP. Social housing is social welfare for working and non working folk.
@Niall English: Further, with the price of average rent of 3 bed you would need to earn approx. 80k to be able to live comfortably while renting, and nobody who earns that much rents as mortgages are much cheaper by monthly repayment comparison to rent.
@Tom L: Yep, on more than one occasion I’ve heard someone who earns well below €40K net ask why HAP recipients can’t work, not knowing they qualify too.
@Tom L: €80,000 required? Where are you renting that requires tou to earn this in order to rent a 3 bed? Where I live you rent a 3 bed for €1200-€1400 ascirrently listed online. That leaves more than €60,000 to live comfortably. No where near the 80k required you insist on.
@Niall English: decent work does not pay anymore… As old pandas get houses long time ago for strowberies…
Also vacant tax would help for long crise with houses…
Also for decent people to afford locally near mumys
@Niall English: so political landlords can make up the shortfall in their takings!
@Megan Ward: /Niall English goes off to fill out HAP forms.
@Mark R: they also banned bedsits.
Living in a small town in the Midlands and there’s a lad in town who buys up every property, house or apartment in town. Then fills it with foreign nationals to the brim, he has them working somewhere because I work with people on job seekers and I don’t see them. We already have a huge amount of Ukrainians and other IPAs so this lad just making money out of this. It’s greed and there’s so many local young people moving away as no where to live, or worse, homeless because every space is being bought up privately
The system is broken, and in an attempt to determine bad landlords, the draconian regulations and obscene tax laws have driven out the good landlords ..
Why do the corporate landlords who own 100s of rentals get preferential treatment and pay practically no tax and muggins here like me with a single rental pays huge tax (40% of net rent) ?
Security of tenure is great for tenants to have peace of mind, but what if the tenants are Bums who don’t pay the rent and destroy the place?
The RTB is useless. It can take years to legally evict a bad tenant, and then there’s no comeback as they just disappear. The landlord is left out of pocket, facing a massive repair
@frank dowling: there should be security of tenure offered by the big, institutional, pension fund, landlords. The private landlords often need their property back, maybe renting out when abroad for work.
Making bedsits illegal is the root cause.
It’s depressing to say the least.
… And those 33 are only kips left.
@peter willekens: for irish. ukranians getting brand new modular homes worth 400k.
@Niall English: They’re not worth 400k it cost that much to build them for gov, privately you can get them for 60k. If ya know, ya know.
@peter willekens: uninhabitable standarts for rich country
@Niall English: can’t say that that’s racist, anyway we look good to the eu if we look after all non eu members who enter the country from outside eu. Makes it hard to see the benefit of being a member from that perspective.
That’s one goal this government has successfully reached. Congrats.
Adam Smith warned about keeping the state away from the market, we ignored his warnings.
Meddling in the market, RPZ’s locked in a cycle of rent increases. Unintended consequences. New rents pitched way too high and guaranteed rent increases evey year there after. Many landlords only changed rents when tenants left, they don’t leave any more.
@Allo Allo: When they PRTB finally force you to get out of providing accommodation the loan redemption will be insufficient if you have been a compassionate landlord.
@Allo Allo: how can they leave.
@damien leen: yeah they can’t, successive governments caught with their pants down after the crash have failed to deliver housing and still playing catch up, the regulations introduced have in general made things worse. Populist decisions, only ones winning are the institutionalsl landlords.
This country getting worse by the day smh
There are non nationals working in full time employment recieving H.A.P. can anyone tell me what other country does this so i can emigrate!? Have heard about couples who have seperated- he,s living it up in a two bed apt. No doubt shes doing the same!
@derek: anyone on full time low income can get some sort of hap , it’s some sort of help to pay a part of the rent , it’s often not that much depending on your level of income ,
Similar help in place in France , Germany , Italy and all over Europe, you don’t need to be foreign to get it , it’s for everyone on low income
@derek:
If they are earning under €40,000 and are EU citizens they are fully entitled to it, just as you can move to their country. You probably won’t get as much supports but you will likely have a much lower cost of living.
@Galway Bay:
Great minds think alike!!
@derek: still in pub je
Try living in hap government????
have your say