26 February 2022
By Tom Collins
tom@TheCork.ie
“Half of Privately Rented Properties in the area around UCC are not registered with the Residental Tenancies Board (RTB)”
For the third time in five years, a sample check by residents living near UCC continues to show that the majority of landlords renting properties in the area appear to have not registered their privately rented properties with the RTB.
Magazine Road and Surrounding Areas Residents Association have again written to the Board of Management of the RTB and the newly appointed RTB Director, Mr Niall Byrne to highlight this ongoing issue. Legislation in 2014 requires all privately rented properties to be registered with the RTB.
Checks carried out by Magazine Road and Surrounding Areas residents over five years have found that the majority (over 60%) are not registered with the RTB. A similar survey carried out recently by residents living close to University of Limerick shows similar rates of non registration. If these statistics are replicated across the country, it would result in approximately 300,000 privately rented properties not being registered with the RTB, resulting in millions of euros in lost revenue to the State.
Residents have been forwarding this information to the RTB since 2017 and there has been little or no change to the registration figures. Despite the RTB responding to residents that it takes the non-registration of privately rented properties seriously, there is little evidence of this on the ground. When An Taoiseach was questioned last year on the non-registration issue, he stated quite clearly that it was not a matter of resources available to the RTB.
Residents are asking why there appears to be no appetite by the RTB to follow up on the non-registration of properties.
Chairperson of the Magazine Road and Surrounding Areas Resident Association, Catherine Clancy said: “The non-compliance by landlords on their statutory requirement has serious consequences for tenants, neighbours and the local community and results in a closed door or delays in resolving issues and the RTB failing in their duty of care to us as a third party. The residents association believes the consistency of non registration of privately rented properties over many years requires a complete system change within the RTB if it is to fulfil its legal obligations. A system that relies on landlords to self regulate is not working for us as residents and in our experience is not fit for purpose.”
