Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn has said that rent increases in Donegal, particularly in the north of the county, are now at crisis level for families.
The Sinn Fein TD was responding to the latest Daft.ie rent report that reveals that Donegal has witnessed the highest increase in rent across the State with a 24% jump in the last year.
Deputy Mac Lochlainn said “I have had serious concerns about rent increases in North Donegal for a while now. The cost of renting a typical family home in North Donegal has increased from around €600 per month, not that long ago, up to over €1,000 per month these days.
“This is the outworking of the disastrous government failure to build public housing across Donegal for a decade up until recently. Huge numbers of families that should be living in public housing right now have been forced to rent in the private sector.
“This has squeezed the supply of private rental accommodation across the county and pushed up rent costs.”
He added that when you add our Mica housing crisis to all of that, we have a perfect storm saying “It’s now a real crisis”.
Deputy Mac Lochlainn said his party have repeatedly called for the government to introduce a three year rent freeze across the State.
Padraig Mac Lochlainn TD
He added “The government has refused to do so. Worse, they place huge barriers to the introduction of Rent Pressure Zones to cap rent increases in a county like Donegal.
“I have recently submitted questions to the Minister for Housing, asking if he will introduce a Rent Pressure Zone in Donegal. He passed the buck to the Residential Tenancies Board and when I contacted them, the criteria is so onerous, that it is unlikely we will see rent controls in Donegal any time soon.
“This is shocking as any one who is working on housing issues with families in Donegal knows how serious the rent increase crisis is.
“I am again appealing to the Minister for Housing and the government to take a special look at Donegal with this perfect housing storm that we are experiencing and to urgently intervene.”
