The dwindling number of properties available within Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) limits shows that the government’s ongoing reliance on the private rental market is not a sustainable model, according to Social Democrats TD Rory Hearne.
Deputy Hearne, who is the party’s housing spokesperson, said:
“The latest quarterly ‘Locked Out of the Market’ report from the Simon Communities of Ireland makes for grim reading.
“It reveals that just 41 properties were available to rent within the discretionary rate of HAP across 16 areas surveyed over three dates last month. Of these, 31 were located in Dublin, with no HAP properties available in 10 of the areas surveyed.
“This represent a decrease of 11 per cent, or five properties, since the last survey was conducted in December 2024.
“These figures highlight the complete dysfunction of housing policy in recent decades. This has resulted in successive governments shifting away from building social housing in favour of sourcing properties from the private rental sector via HAP, which was introduced by the Fine Gael-Labour government in 2014.
“Numerous reports have warned that HAP is an insecure for model of housing provision that does not represent value for money as the State is paying almost a billion a year into landlords’ pockets – with no permanent social housing to show for it.
“This flawed policy means we are constantly chasing rents and results in regular evictions of low-income households from HAP tenancies into homelessness.
“The figures also highlight the importance of reinstating the tenant in-situ scheme in full. The reality is that if any of the 60,000 HAP households are evicted, they will not be able to find somewhere else to rent and will inevitably join the growing ranks of Ireland’s homeless.
“The latest report from the Simon Communities of Ireland proves that HAP is not a sustainable solution to Ireland’s housing crisis, but just another example of failed government policy.”
April 17, 2025