A mother of two who was overholding after trying “every avenue possible” to secure alternative accommodation has been ordered to vacate her rented property of almost two decades.
Tenant Jennifer Roche told a Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) tribunal she did not wish to be overholding but that her situation “had to be seen in the context of an extreme housing crisis.”
Her landlord, Enda Mulligan, who wished to sell the property in Moycullen, Co Galway, said he and his family are in a “precarious financial position”, with a son studying in Dublin and renting accommodation at a sum “far in excess” of the €950 being paid by Ms Roche.
Ms Roche told the tribunal she has been pursuing “every avenue possible”, including applying for planning permission to install a mobile home on her mother’s land in Tuam. However, “this was not proving feasible”, she said, adding that she required an ecological report to do so.
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Ms Roche, who is on her local authority’s housing list, sought assistance from Simon Community, but claimed she was told by the homeless charity that she could not avail of their homeless services and they could not advocate for her unless she was on the list for at least eight years “or had a disabled child”.
She said she “could not possibly afford the rents that are being sought at the moment”, adding that her son is in his first year in college and that when he is finished for the summer, she might find it possible to stay with a friend.
Ms Roche told the tribunal she had viewed 15 properties, and claimed most landlords “do not even give a response” once they become aware she would be availing of housing assistance payments (HAP).
She claimed the advice she had received from housing charity Threshold, Simon Community and Galway County Council was not to leave the property because “there is nothing else out there”.
Mr Mulligan told the tribunal he decided to sell the house in 2023 and agreed with Ms Roche at the time to sell it to Galway County Council through the tenant in situ scheme, which would allow her to remain in place.
He subsequently issued a notice of termination, which is required for the scheme, with a vacate date of May 19th, 2024.
He claimed he pursued the council for nine months, sending 40 emails, and contacted public representatives before receiving an offer from the council nine days before Ms Roche was due to vacate the property.
However, Mr Mulligan claimed the offer received was “far less” than the market value of the house, and he refused.
After the vacate date had passed and Ms Roche began to overhold, his solicitor issued a letter to Ms Roche in June offering a three-month tenancy at a rent of €1,800, almost double the monthly rent she was paying, with Mr Mulligan saying it was the market rate at the time.
Mr Mulligan said the offer was made in “good faith and as a gesture of goodwill”, claiming the rent had not increased significantly in almost 20 years. However, Ms Roche refused, saying she could only afford €950 per month.
Ms Roche did not dispute her landlord’s evidence, adding that the response from the council which came days before her vacate date did not allow her to find alternative accommodation.
She said there are “many people in the same situation” as her “who literally have nowhere to go”.
In finding the notice of termination served on Ms Roche valid, the tribunal ordered her to vacate and give up possession within 28 days.
