Majority of Tipperary rental properties fail to meet minimum standards

The vast majority of rental properties inspected by Tipperary County Council last year were not compliant with minimum standards.

The latest figures were revealed in the National Oversight and Audit Commission’s Local Authority Performance Indication report for 2020.

Of the 765 private rentals inspected in Tipperary last year only 91 were compliant with the minimum standards, giving Tipperary a non-compliance rate of just under 90%.

Tipperary TD Martin Browne said that the near total non-compliance with minimum rental standards in Tipperary was a cause for serious concern.

“Rents have risen significantly over the past year with the average rent in Tipperary now over €780 a month, yet despite this it is clear the quality of rental accommodation is not improving,” he said.

The Sinn Féin TD said that the figures laid bare the scale of the problem.

Out of 8,120 registered private rentals only 765 were inspected and of these only 91 met the legal minimum standards for private rentals, he pointed out.

Deputy Browne said that he had contacted Tipperary County Council to ask them what were their plans to address this high level of non-compliance

“I have also raised the low number of inspections as less than 10% of rental properties have been inspected. Clearly with such a high level of non-compliance there needs to be more inspections carried out by the council to ensure that tenants are not living in unsafe housing,” he said.

The Cashel-based TD said that, ultimately, there was a need for more social and affordable housing to ensure people were not trapped in expensive, substandard private rental accommodation.

“This is the only long-term solution to our housing crisis but in the meantime, we need to ensure that private rental properties meet the legal minimum standards,” he said.