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THE GOVERNMENT HAS insisted recent evictions are not connected to the newly-introduced rental rules. However, our readers’ experiences suggest the reality is different for many renters, and that there are mounting concerns among tenants over the changes to the rules.
The government introduced a radical change in renting laws last Sunday which allows landlords of tenancies beginning from 1 March to reset rents to market rates either between tenancies or after a tenant has been in the property for a six-year period.
Two days before the rental rules came into place, 36 homes in the same housing estate in Wexford received eviction notices, but the Minister for Housing has categorically said the incident is unrelated to his rent reset.
We asked our readers if they were served with an eviction notice in recent weeks and dozens got in touch to say they were evicted ahead of the rules coming into place, leaving them facing homelessness, moving in with elderly relatives or looking at a life abroad.
Many of our readers with tenancies entered before March believe they were evicted under false pretences so their landlord could raise the rent.
Landlords are entitled to evict for a range of reasons, for example if the landlord intends to sell or they need the property for their own use or for a family member.
Thank you to the readers who shared their experiences of evictions.
“My tenancy has definitely been impacted despite the tenancy starting before the new rules,” one renter told The Journal.
They said that in recent weeks their landlord asked for a meeting to advise them that their rent is below the market rate.
“We were given an ultimatum where they asked for an extra third of the rent [on top of the existing rate] to be payable from the following month,” they said.
“We were told we would be given notice to move out if we didn’t agree to pay the increase, as they ‘have a family member who’d love to move in’,” they said.
“There are too many loopholes for landlords to kick you out, and they know no one will follow up to make sure they really did move that relative in after you left.”
Another renter said that after seven years renting the same property, their landlord served them with an eviction notice last month.
“The landlord has indirectly let it be known he is happy to give me a new six-year tenancy but at market rates exactly double what I am currently paying,” they said.
A woman said she and her family of four received an eviction notice last October after living in their home for over five years: “We were told that the house we are currently in will be rented again for €800 more.”
Another renter said that in January they received a distressing call from their landlord, who said he’d be evicting the man and his young family due to the rental rule changes.
“He sounded audibly shaken. He wants to sell before the new regulations take effect next week, fearing a loss of control over the future of the house,” they said.
The man said that the latest change, combined with the “impossibility of securing childcare” for his son has led to him and his partner deciding to move abroad.
“We cannot give our child a future in a place this dysfunctional,” he said.
Many readers shared feelings of hopelessness over the state of the rental market.
A couple and their toddler who previously experienced homelessness were served with an eviction notice just six months after finally securing rented accommodation.
“We moved in in September. I finally got all of our belongings out of storage just before Christmas. We have just been issued with a notice to quit on 20 February,” they said.
“I am trying to be optimistic in these difficult times, at least I won’t have to pack again as most of our stuff is still in its boxes from when we moved in.”
Another young couple with a toddler said after moving into a rental near their work six months ago they thought their lives “can finally begin properly”.
“After six months of tenancy we have been served an eviction notice. And here we go again, we have to move again. But where?” they said.
One renter said the impact the new rental rules has had on them means their hope of owning their own property is now a “pipe dream”.
“I received an eviction notice on Friday – just one week before the change. I’ve barely slept since,” they said.
“Six months’ notice doesn’t really mean much when you’ve got nine days before the market goes insane. I’ve been looking for a room in a houseshare, I’m in my thirties and I’ve a relatively decent job, but there’s no way I can afford [to buy] even the tiniest studio.”
One woman told The Journal that an eviction notice served to herself and her family has left them with “nowhere to go” as rents have doubled since they began renting the property.
“My special needs boy has to apply to assisted living as we have nowhere to go. It’s broken my family apart. My daughter has to move into college digs and I haven’t a clue where I’ll go,” she said.
“I’ve had to go to a psychiatrist as I literally had a breakdown. I’m unable to cope with this insecurity at 56 years old.”
A 48-year-old father of three said he returned home from a double hip replacement surgery in February to an eviction notice for the property he and his family have rented for 14 years.
“We have three children who were all born into this house. We’re trying to secure somewhere else before telling them, but there’s a real risk of homelessness. There is very little available,” he said.
Another said his recent eviction notice is forcing him to move back in with his 75-year-old parents, while a couple informed of their eviction two weeks ago said their only option is to move home and commute 140km each day for work.
A couple in their fifties said that after receiving a notice of termination late last year for the property they have been renting for 12 years, they now feel their only option is to move abroad.
Although they can’t work 100% remotely, they said renting in Europe and flying to Dublin once a week will be cheaper than finding new accommodation in Dublin.
“Ireland has always had a history of people leaving for a better life, but in 2026, when we push the narrative of Ireland being a success story, I often wonder if I’m living in a parallel universe,” they said.
“We are not young people who may appreciate and benefit from an adventure living abroad, we simply have no options on the table.”
Several small landlords also got in touch with The Journal to explain why they evicted tenants before the new rules came into place.
“I have served an eviction notice to a good long-standing tenant of over 14 years ahead of the March deadline. The new laws were the last straw so I’m out.” one landlord said.
A former landlord said that if a landlord locks into a six year tenancy, they believe it’s likely that if they choose to sell their property they will have to sell it under the tenant-in-situ scheme, which can lower the price significantly.
A landlord with two properties said the six year requirement for new tenancies has led to them evicting their tenant, while another said he has evicted his tenants but won’t sell his property as he feels it will make more in capital appreciation.
“The bottom line is that in a massive housing crisis I am being forced to turn the key and leave it empty,” he said.
In a statement to The Journal Minister for Housing James Browne said: “Let me be very clear. There are rules here and landlords are expected to follow them, and if they do not, they should face the full rigour of the Residential Tenancies Board’s dispute mechanisms.”
“A landlord has responsibilities, and tenants have rights. I have increased funding to the RTB to ramp up their oversight, their systems and their capacity.”
The Department of Housing told The Journal that if tenants believe they have been issued with an invalid eviction notice, they should raise a case with the RTB within 90 days of receiving it.
It said the RTB can investigate and sanction a landlord if the reason provided for the termination of the tenancy was false or misleading. It also pointed to rules preventing landlords from resetting rent for a new tenancy if the previous contract ended via a ‘no-fault eviction’ within the last two years.
A breakdown of what the new rental rules are, how it will impact renters and landlords, and what politicians are saying about it can be found here.
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