Donegal TD and Minister of State for Sport Charlie McConalogue has welcomed the news that rent pressure zones will now be extended nationwide, including Donegal for the first time.
The legislation which was passed yesterday will now link rent increases to inflation, with a cap of no more than 2 percent per year.
There is also new legislation which bans no-fault evictions for a period of six years, for renters who have been in situ for an established period of time.
“This is a welcome development for renters here in Donegal as it limits the amount landlords can increase rents by on a yearly basis. Donegal has never had designated Rent Pressure Zones before, so this good news for local renters,” McConalogue said in a statement.
“This legislation also protects tenants from sudden or significant increases in rent that could force them to leave their homes.”
While this new legislation means that a ban on no-fault evictions has been put in place for the first time in the history of the state, members of the opposition have criticised the imposition of a six-year limit on rentals which previously would have been of an unlimited duration.
Critics of the legislation say that this means after six years, landlords can evict tenants and then hike previously controlled rents to potentially much-higher market levels.
However, McConalogue says that the new legislation will provide “certainty, clarity and stability” for renters in Donegal.
“Ultimately, this is about providing certainty, clarity and stability for the rental sector in Donegal. Under the previous legislation, only areas designated as a Rent Pressure Zone had rent increase controls, but this didn’t include any areas in Donegal.”
“In order to provide greater security of tenure for tenants, the government will also introduce legislative changes to significantly restrict ‘no fault’ evictions. These changes will further enhance the current provision of tenancies of unlimited duration with the introduction of rolling tenancies of a minimum of six-years.”
