Housing groups urge Government to halt garden homes exemption plans over renters’ rights fears

Ellen O'Donoghue

Threshold, Age Action and the Irish Council for International Students (ICOS) have called on the Government to halt proposed planning exemptions for garden homes.

The organisations urged the Government to pause the proposals and engage with housing experts and frontline organisations to ensure that any new measures increase housing supply "without undermining renters' rights or housing standards."

They asked for a pause that lasts until a full review of licence arrangements is completed and basic protections for occupants are put in place.

In a joint media statement, they expressed concern about reports that the Government plans to exempt garden homes from planning requirements and to extend rent-a-room tax relief to owners of the units.

Recognising the "urgent need" to increase housing supply, the organisations warned that "this measure carries significant risks" and "strongly caution against" the proposal.

Based on Threshold's frontline experience, the statement said, "those who privately rent garden homes are often treated as ‘licensees’, with little to no tenancy security, no protection from rent increases and no recourse if issues arise."

The homelessness prevention advocacy group say it "regularly sees cases of people living under license arrangements in poor quality, substandard, cramped accommodation with no effective route to enforce minimum standards."

Meanwhile, those renting an extension or garden home are not necessarily licensees, but "are often treated as such."

The legal distinction between a licence arrangement and a tenancy can be complex, the statement adds, and in many cases, must be determined by adjudicators at the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB).

However, regardless of how an arrangement is ultimately classified, no one should be left without basic housing protections, it further states, and extending rent-a-room relief to garden homes risks further entrenching those insecure arrangements.

Removing planning requirements also increases the likelihood that poorly designed and unsuitable housing will be delivered, without adequate oversight or assessment of local impacts such as additional demand on water or energy services, the organisations said.

They called the proposal "particularly concerning."

"Threshold, ICOS, and Age Action believe this approach has the potential to negatively affect the groups they support, including students, particularly international students, older people who may be pressured by family members or third parties seeking to benefit from their property, and those already experiencing housing insecurity."

The organisations also expressed concern that linking garden homes to the rent-a-room scheme could increase the growth of these informal licence-style rental arrangements that are not covered by the protections of the Residential Tenancies Act.

Therefore, those renting under these arrangements often have few rights and or no access to recourse through the RTB.

They stressed that "creating large numbers of new insecure rental arrangements is not a solution to the housing crisis.

"Before introducing measures that may significantly expand licence-based renting, the Government must undertake a comprehensive review of the current use of licence arrangements in the private rented sector.

"While licence arrangements have a limited and legitimate role in certain circumstances, they have expanded far beyond their original purpose and now warrant urgent review."