Sir, - Here in Galway, as I am sure is the case elsewhere, the vast majority of landlords are unregistered and thus escape tax on their often substantial rental incomes.
Proper enforcement of the legislation on landlord registration would yield an immense revenue for the Exchequer. Also, it can be argued that non-enforcement of this legislation plays a part in sustaining the current investor-driven explosion in residential property prices by effectively increasing the return on investment.
Identifying the offenders would be a relatively simple task, as most of them advertise periodically to attract new tenants. A copy of any local newspaper will provide the Revenue Commissioner's sleuths with hundreds of convenient leads. - Yours, etc.,
Liam Loftus, St Brendan's Avenue, Woodquay, Galway.