THOUSANDS OF registrations by landlords to the Private Residential Tenancies Board (PRTB) have to be returned because of failures to complete the paperwork properly.
Under a change made by Minister for Finance Brian Cowen, landlords are required to register properties within a month of rental at a cost of €70 per tenancy before they are able to claim mortgage interest relief.
The residential board chairman, Tom Dunne, said yesterday that in 2006 the level of compliance by landlords increased significantly as 136,000 properties were listed - a 64 per cent increase on 2005.
He said so far the board has not launched any prosecutions under Sections 144 and 145 of the legislation against landlords for failing to register, but 60 cases have been sent to the board's solicitors.
He said paperwork errors "significantly" delayed registration.
"The main difficulties appear to be the submission of invalid PPS numbers, an incorrect fee or the absence of the landlord or tenant signature or both."
He said registration now took five weeks, and the PRTB was planning an online system.
The board was asked to resolve 1,300 tenants/landlords disputes in 2006, a 44 per cent increase on 2005, although a significant number of other cases were resolved without any formal hearings. Two-thirds of the applications came from tenants.
Nearly two-thirds of the cases dealt with concerned problems about the return of a tenant deposit. "The board would like to reiterate again to landlords that the deposit belongs to the tenant, and can only be used to offset any rent arrears outstanding at the end of the tenancy or to defray the costs of damage beyond normal wear and tear."