Richard O Donoghue: Renters deserve basic safety and standards in an exorbitant rental market

TD Richard O Donoghue has questioned the widespread failure of rental properties to meet minimum safety and habitability standards, following the release of new data showing that tens of thousands of rental homes across the country are in breach of regulations.

The Limerick TD and General Secretary of Independent Ireland, said the figures revealed by the Department of Housing are a “extremely concerning" and indicative of a system that is failing people at the most basic level.

“People are paying exorbitant prices to rent homes in this country — the very least they should expect is that those homes meet basic standards of safety, warmth and decency”. “Instead, thousands of families and individuals are being housed in properties that are structurally unsound, unsafe, or lacking in proper ventilation, heating and fire protection.”

Figures from 2024 show that more than 62,000 rental properties were inspected nationwide, with 37,800 — more than half — failing to meet standards as set out by law. 

“These aren’t minor issues. These are failures of structural integrity, fire safety, sanitation, heating, and electricity — the very basics of a liveable home. It is an indictment of the State’s ongoing failure to protect tenants,” O'Donoghue said.

While welcoming the additional €10.5 million in funding for local authority inspections announced by Minister James Browne, Independent Ireland insists that enforcement and accountability are key — and too often lacking.

“It is simply not good enough to issue warning letters or improvement notices and then turn a blind eye. There must be follow up”

“Renters are being charged record rates — but are being handed cold, damp, unsafe houses in return.. We cannot continue to allow this failure to address basic needs in a housing market already strained to breaking point.”