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LANDLORDS WILL BE allowed to reset rents at market rates every six years for new tenancies signed after March next year.
The new rules announced by the government today will only apply to tenancy agreements signed on and after 1 March 2026.
Renters who have signed those agreements will have tenancy security for the first six years, meaning they cannot be evicted unless there has been a genuine breach to the rental agreement.
Landlords, from 1 March 2026, will be allowed to charge new renters at market rates. The property owner can then change the cost of the rent every six years.
The new rules will not apply to renters in fixed-term tenancy agreements or existing tenants who are currently renting.
Smaller landlords – with three or fewer rental properties – will be allowed to carry out limited, emergency evictions, but will not be allowed to increase the rent between tenancies.
Housing minister James Browne told reporters today that the largest changes to rents will be seen in 2032. He said that the housing supply in the rental sector will have increased by then and that prices will adjust downwards to reflect that.
Should there be a dispute between the renter and the landlord regarding the correct price of the market rent, the Residential Tenancies Board – the landlord regulator – can intervene and rule what the correct cost should be, the minister added.
Eviction prevention charity Threshold has said that the Residential Tenancies Board should be better funded and resourced in order to meet such requirements. It added that rental payment supports should also be increased for new tenants.
A number of changes to the rental sector regulations have been proposed today, with the main aim to boost apartment construction and attract funding in an area of the industry which as reportedly fallen flat in recent months.
For existing renters, landlords will only be allowed to increase rents by up to 2% every year.
Landlords will be allowed to increase the cost of rent for their property to the market rates only in cases where the occupants leave voluntarily.
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