INADEQUACIES IN the rent supplement system are forcing those in receipt of social welfare into sub-standard accommodation, the chairwoman of housing charity Threshold has said.
Speaking following the publication of the organisation’s annual report, Aideen Hayden called for wide-ranging reforms in the private rented sector to put an end to “discrimination” against those claiming rent supplement, which now costs the Government more than €500 million annually.
Ms Hayden said those in receipt of the benefit, particularly when living alone, were finding it difficult to find quality accommodation that did not exceed the monthly cap they are permitted to spend in order to qualify.
The caps in Dublin, including a weekly tenant contribution of €24, stand at €525 per month if living alone, €399 for a person sharing a property, and €930 for a single parent with one child.
This was creating a two-tier rental market and forcing those reliant on benefits to live in properties such as bedsits where issues such as vermin, dangerous electrical wiring, damp, fungus growth or no central heating were being encountered, she said.
“It is not easy to find accommodation at that level,” Ms Hayden said. “If a landlord is willing to accept rent supplement you’re still not going to find a one-bedroom apartment at that price.”
Threshold is calling on the Government to negotiate directly with landlords on behalf of those receiving rent supplement. Such a move would offer landlords more certainty, enable the State to negotiate more favourable rents and ensure that only tax-compliant landlords can qualify, it said.
“A direct payment system would reduce the potential for abuses and create administrative efficiencies,” Ms Hayden said.
Minister of State for Housing Michael Finneran, who launched the report, said he was planning to introduce a register of dwellings. This meant only landlords whose properties complied with quality measures would be allowed to receive rent supplement, he said.
Mr Finneran said more properties than ever were being inspected by local authorities and that the Government was committed to ensuring people in receipt of rent supplement were living in quality accommodation.
Ms Hayden said 4,000 of the 20,000 properties inspected last year failed to meet minimum quality standards but that only three landlords had been prosecuted for the offence. She said there was an inconsistency in the number of inspections being carried out and that inspectors should focus on properties over 20 years old and not on ticking boxes.
Threshold said issues between landlords and tenants over the return of deposits were at the root of more than 4,000 cases dealt with by the organisation this year. Ms Hayden said this was symptomatic of the problems landlords were having in the recession and that many did not now have the money to refund tenants.
She said the creation of a State deposit retention scheme – where the money would be held independently by a third party – could “resolve the issue to a large extent” by keeping it separate from landlord and tenant. An estimated €250 million is being held in deposits across the State.
Mr Finneran said there were 234,000 tenancies in the State and less than 1 per cent were in dispute.
Main points threshold report
- 21,000 queries were received by the charity
- 4,125 queries were about landlords holding deposits
- Threshold dealt with a total of 907 illegal evictions last year
- 37 per cent of those in contact relied on social welfare for income
- 40 per cent of those who complained about sub-standard housing were in receipt of rent supplement
- 35 per cent of landlords offered to reduce people's rent when rent supplement was cut in the budget
- 150 letting agents in the State are known to be unlicensed.
- Tenants reported problems such as vermin, dampness, bad wiring, no central heating and fungus growing on the walls
- 20,000 properties inspected by local authorities in 2009, 4,000 failed to meet minimum standards; three people were prosecuted
