It was clear from when the Government announced reforms to the rental market , which came into effect at the start of this month, that it could create problems in the short term. In fact, senior officials in the Department of Housing had warned of the risk of rising rents and also of increasing evictions, as landlords sought to take advantage of the new rules, which allow rents to be reset between tenancies.
The reason the Government went ahead was that rental supply needs to be increased and it is trying to achieve this. In the event, it faced criticism not only from the Opposition – arguing that renters would be disadvantaged – but also from some private landlords, who argued that the new rules obliging them to offer six-year tenancies and further restricting no fault evictions would devalue their properties.
Figures from the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB), published yesterday, do show a rise in evictions in the latter part of 2025, with the total number of termination notices topping 20,000 for the year as a whole, up by a fifth on 2024. While the total number of tenancies registered with the RTB has increased, the figures also show a drop in the number of smaller landlords. These trends are in line with other figures showing some increase in build-to-rent apartments last year, mainly in Dublin and also data from estate agents showing significantly more smaller landlords leaving the market than are joining.
The question for the Government now is whether it has got the balance of reforms right, which would lead to an increase in supply while still providing significant protections for tenants. Aspects of the rent controls in recent years have been one factor in reducing supply, leading to an ever-higher march in rental costs. The RTB found that rents for new tenancies rose by more than 5 per cent last year, again ahead of inflation.
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The reforms are designed to attract more private investment, which is also incentivised through other measures. The problem for the Government is that it is does not have full control and is hoping that the private sector responds, rather than being sure it will.
It is also essential that efforts to increase State-sponsored supply continue to be stepped up. As well as private rented accommodation there is also a dire shortage of social homes. The State also needs to redouble efforts to boost the supply of cost rental properties, where rents are tied to the cost of provision rather than market prices. This may be the only route to allow many people on average wages to live near their work in city centres, in line with national spatial targets.
Private sector supply funded by investors will only be suitable for highly paid people. Some smaller landlords will remain. But the Government also has a big supply responsibility in the rental market.
