Landlords now put under pressure
Gillian Hayes, second from right, with her staff outside her premises in Wexford town.
'MOST of our time is taken up with contacting property owners to see can they reduce the rent,' said Gillian Hayes of Gillian Hayes Property Letting in Wexford town.
She said that the reduction in the rent supplement has had an effect on both tenants and landlords. ' There was a lack of transparency, really. They said they wouldn't touch social welfare, but didn't mention they were cutting the rent allowance,' she commented. ' The reality is that rents are having to fall to meet that. On top of that, the choice of accommodation has been lowered for tenants that are on the allowance.'
She pointed out that some landlords are unable to reduce the rent they charge. 'Some landlords can't afford to drop rent, especially considering the €200 second property tax. They have to come up with that on top of the drop in rent. With the market we're in, owners are also having to spend more dressing their properties in order to rent them,' she said.
She said that many of the tenants she comes across, who are depending on social welfare, are finding things tough, especially since there are other bills such as heating and bins. 'We would have a huge duty of care now,' she said. ' They definitely are under pressure.'
Landlords who have tenants already in place may have no option but to reduce the rent. 'For those who have people already in place, the owners will have no choice but to reduce,' said Gillian. ' All you can do is to encourage them to keep the good tenants they have.
'We also see people who are working and are not eligible for rent allowance,' she added. ' They are struggling too.'
' There was no publication of the reductions in the rates in the Budget. It just literally happened.'
'In Wexford, there's a shortage of good town properties,' she said. 'Many properties that come on the market, once they are in good condition and priced right, they are snapped up within a couple of days.'
Alan Switzer of Courtown Property Shop said he has come across two landlords who have just given up their houses this year because of the fall in rents.
' There are some landlords who are in debt for their houses, and might be living abroad and are renting their house out,' he said. ' They just can't afford the rent reduction. With the rent supplement coming down, they have just given up renting and said to the bank to take the house. I've seen two occasions where this happened already this year.
'It wasn't worth their while renting and keeping the house maintained. There's not enough money in it.'
He said the tenants are also having to find extra money each week for rent, and are coming under pressure.
He commented that rents in the area have dropped from around €750 per month for a three-bed house, to around €600 or less, in the past two years, so landlords have already taken a hit. ' They can't afford for rents to come down any more,' he said.
' There are fixed costs involved in renting houses, and landlords can't afford to rent anymore,' he concluded. ' The government is trying to drive down the cost of renting houses, but in reality, the end result is that houses are just coming off the market.'
