Rents ‘going from bad to worse’

• CORK City South East was found to have the highest rent costs in the county for people taking up residency in the first quarter of this year according to new data published by the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB).

  The average cost of rent in the area for people moving into new properties currently stands at €1,656.

  This comes in more than €112 over the national standardised average rent of new tenancies nationally which was recorded as €1,544 in the first quarter of this year.

  This is in contrast to the lowest average rental price-Bantry in West Cork-which came in at €793.19 in the first quarter of 2023.

  Kanturk had the second lowest average rental costs at just €907.78 per month. 

Fermoy was also among the more reasonably priced, with renters expected to pay around €981 on average for a rental property.

Meanwhile, renters in Carrigaline forked out an average of €1,415 per month. Cobh was also included in the findings, with the average rental cost working out at €1,221 per month.

Macroom and Mallow were also on the list, with average rental prices reported as €1,162 and €1,069, respectively.

Cork City South Central had an average rental cost of €1,516 in the first quarter of this year, compared to Cork City South West, where average rental cost was €1,576.

The Residential Tenancies Board’s Rent Index, which measures rental prices for those taking up new tenancies in the private rental sector, also shed light on national figures.

The national standardised average rent in new tenancies was €1,544 in Q1 2023, which is an increase of €38, or 2.5%, in comparison with Q4 2022.

Sinn Féin junior spokesperson on housing, Thomas Gould, said the issue was a “Government legacy”.

“The Residential Tenancies Board’s Rent Index report published today shows that things are going from bad to worse for renters under Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael,” said the Cork North Central TD.

“This disaster is the legacy of this Government and of 12 years of Fine Gael in power.

“Instead of cutting rents, under Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, rents are rocketing upwards.

“Fifteen counties have had an increase of over 10% in the last year alone.

“With the average rent in Dublin now at over €2,000, it is clear this Government is failing a whole generation. We need a step change. The bottom line is we need a Government that will cut rents and build homes.”

The Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) published the Q1 2023 Rent Index report in line with the period of January to March 2023.

Independently analysed by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI), the RTB Rent Index report is based on the total number of private tenancies newly registered with the RTB each quarter.

In light of the latest figures, Labour candidate for Cork City South West, Laura Harmon, was also among those calling for urgent support to assist renters in Budget 2024.

“Renters in Cork and nationally need to be supported by the Government to keep up with rising rents and the cost of living,” she said.

“Increased rent relief should be given to renters in Budget 2024 without the requirement to give the landlord’s registration number so that renters whose landlords aren’t registered are included.”

She highlighted some of her concerns, adding: “In addition to this, a windfall tax on energy companies must be introduced so that they are passing profits on to consumers.

“Renters must be supported to be able to afford to heat their homes this winter and not have to choose between buying food or staying warm.”