2nd December, 2025
“Honourable, Decent Tenants” could be biggest losers in new rent laws, IPAV to tell Oireachtas Housing Committee
The biggest losers of all in new rent legislation could be “honourable, decent tenants”, if small private landlords continue to exit the market, IPAV, the Institute of Professional Auctioneers & Valuers, will tell the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage on Tuesday (2nd December) when it undertakes pre-legislative scrutiny of the Residential Tenancies Amendment No. 2 Bill.
Latest data from the Residential Tenancies Board published last week (November 28th) found a 35% increase year-on-year in Q3 2025 in Notices of Termination from landlords to tenants. It also found a drop of 1,820 landlords from the market between Q4 2024 and Q3 2025, with 1,381 of these being landlords with just one tenancy.
Now, among 142 agents, members of IPAV, responding to a request for feedback in advance of Tuesday’s hearing:
- Almost 74% said they have observed landlords leaving the market at an increasing rate
- Over 58% said very few investors were entering the rental market and 40% said none were
- Nearly 61% said the rental market is decreasing, while over 33% said it was limited
- Almost 94% are seeing what they termed strong demand for rental properties
- Only 1.41% described demand as weak.
Genevieve McGuirk, IPAV Chief Executive will tell the Committee. “That private landlords are leaving the market at a time when we have record high rents should be a red alert.”
When properties were in plentiful supply market forces worked very well for tenants. They frequently negotiated down rents with their landlords. “There are people who have questioned this on the national airwaves, but it is a fact,” she will tell the Committee.
“It speaks to the vital importance of increasing supply, and we believe this is where the State should place the lion’s share of its effort.”
Speaking in advance of the hearing she also said national policy “seems to be continuing to advance an approach that views the small private landlord as dispensable.”
“Many such landlords saw the short to medium-term provision of housing to the market as an attractive proposition. And equally it served many tenants, particularly workers and students. It provided flexibility in the market for which there is constant and strong demand.”
She said there has been a major policy shift with Governments since the financial crash, and indeed prior to it, having farmed out much responsibility for the provision of social housing to the private sector, with supports such as HAP.” (Housing Assistance Payment).
“But counter-intuitively, rules and regulations have increasingly made the role of the small private landlord an unappealing, unviable proposition.
“Consequently, the State is now having to once more assume responsibility for social provision on a much bigger scale,” she said.
End