Sinn Féin TD for Wicklow, John Brady has said Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael’s Rip-Off Rent Hike Bill will mean renters in Wicklow could see rents jump by a shocking 25%.
Deputy Brady said the government has ‘shafted’ renters with these new rules, as vulture funds and big landlords will be allowed to hike up the rents of 60,000 people every year.
He said Sinn Féin will oppose this legislation tooth and nail, adding “We need to end the rip-off, ban rent increases and make rents affordable”.
Teachta Brady said:
“Fianna Fáil/Fine Gael’s Rent Hike Bill will allow vulture funds and big landlords to hike up the rents of 60,000 people every year. This will mean paying thousands more in rent from March 1st.
“This is the most profound change to rent regulation in a decade which will allow landlords to reset rents to market rates at the start of new tenancies and every six years after that. From March 1st of this year, more and more renters will be subject to this new market rent reset rule, meaning already unaffordable rents will be hiked up even further.
“For renters in Wicklow, this means rent hikes of €4,200 a year – a shocking 25% increase compared to current average rents.
“This is truly scandalous. Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael have shafted renters yet again. They are being made to pay the price for the government’s failed housing policy.
“Government should be focused on bringing rents down, not caving in to the demands of vulture funds and big landlords for ever higher rents.
“Sinn Féin will oppose this legislation tooth and nail. Rents in Wicklow are already too high, renters simply cannot take further hikes.
“We need to end the rip-off, ban rent increases and make rents affordable.
“Stop Fianna Fáil/Fine Gael’s Rent Hike Bill.”
ENDS