Rogue landlords come under the cosh
Greedy rogue landlords charging rents higher than is permitted under Galway’s Rent Pressure Zones are now under investigation by the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB).
The RTB confirmed to the Connacht Tribune that some 958 tenancies in Galway were included in a national Rent Pressure Zone compliance campaign launched last year.
“To date, 77 of those tenancies in Galway have been put forward for formal investigation and sanction through the campaign,” a spokesperson for RTB said.
This represents eight per cent of the tenancies included in the campaign.
As part of the compliance campaign, RTB conducted spot checks, and landlords faced sanctions if they charged rents higher than those allowed under RPZ legislation, which currently limits yearly rent increases in Galway to two per cent. Despite rent caps, the RTB/ESRI Rent Index data up to the end of 2024 showed rents for new tenancies in Galway had increased by 8% or more for eight consecutive quarters.
Galway was also one of seven counties targeted by an RTB registration compliance campaign in February, which was delivered in partnership with Galway County Council.
Caption: Key attendees at the RTB Forum in Galway included (from left) Fergal Leonard, Director of Rental Department, DNG; Rosemary Steen, Director of the RTB; Sarah Mohan, President, ATU Galway Students Union, and John-Mark McCafferty, CEO of Threshold.
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