Rent Supplement Cuts Jan 2012 -What are the implications?

peter barrins

This post has been deleted.

mikemac1

Why is this an issue?

In areas of lower demand these reductions may well drive down rental rates and also property prices as yields will drop.

Seems a good thing to me

The working person competes with the rent allowance tenant for the room or bedsit
The working couple compete with the small family on rent allowance for the decent two bed apartment or small house

Cut the rent allowance rate, the rent for the area drops, taxpayer wins, working people win, rent allowance tenant negotiates and the landlord who is running a business either takes the offer or risk a vacant property

Lugh Ildanach

One option for tenants whose landlords refuse to reduce the rent is to consider lodging complaint with the Private Residential Tenancy Board, as it is unlawful for a landlord to charge more than the market rate.

www.prtb.ie

The expectation is that those on RA who receive the cut will bridge the deficit, it may or may not work out that way but considering most (most as in the majority, online dictionary for anyone feeling pedantic ) landlords don't accept RA anyway the overall effect on market values will be minimal. An option for tenants whose landlords refuse the reduce the rent is to pay the deficit or find alternative accommodation, market rates are rather hard to quantify as with anthing, not all samples will be at the average level.

Lugh Ildanach

Under the previous limits, most landlords would gladly have accepted rent supplement, as they generally reflected (or were greater than) what they could expect to get off private tenants.

With the new lower limits, this will change and rent supplement tenants will be forced out of areas where landlords think that they can get more from private tenants. Those who aren't forced out will no doubt end up paying more out of their social welfare payment for the privelege of staying in their home.

Lugh Ildanach

Lugh Ildanach wrote: »

Under the previous limits, most landlords would gladly have accepted rent supplement............

That is completely untrue, most adds specify no RA and folks seeking to rent with RA can testify that most landlords don't want it, unless of course they are renting out bedsits or the like.

Lugh Ildanach

That may be true now, but this has been a development over the past 12 months, and has increased significantly since the New Year. 12 months ago, there were very few landlords who placed restrictions on their ads.

I would say the tax compliance requirements introduced in last year's budget are as much to blame as the lower rent limits for this pattern emerging.

mp22

Perhaps this discussion would be better else where