Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
MINISTER FOR HOUSING Eoghan Murphy this morning confirmed that under new laws home sharing on platforms such as Airbnb will only be allowed where it is a person’s primary residence.
Homesharing is where a person rents out a part or all of their home for a period of time, usually to tourists who are visiting the country. It can often help homeowners meet their day-to-day bill or pay for their holidays, for example.
However, as home sharing has become more popular as a form of tourism letting, it has resulted in some professional landlords withdrawing houses and apartments that would normally be rented on a long-term basis to instead rent them out as short-term lets, the Department of Housing has said.
And as Ireland is currently in the midst of a deepening housing and homeless crisis, the Department has announced plans to implement new short-term let regulations, to help bring properties back onto the market.
The new short-term let regulations, kicking in on 1 June 2019, will operate on a ‘one host, one home’ model in areas of the country where there is deemed to be a high housing demand.
Basically, homeowners who currently let a second property on a short-term basis will no longer be allowed to do so.
In addition, an annual cap of 90 days will apply for the renting out of a home and homeowners can only rent out their homes for 14 days or less at a time.
Short-term letting will be defined as “the use of a bedroom or bedrooms in a home as paid overnight guest accommodation for a continuous period of up to two weeks”.
Where a home or apartment is a person’s principal private residence, they will be permitted to rent out a room, or rooms, within their home for short-term letting without restriction (eg. B&B-type use).
However, they will only be allowed to sub-let their entire house without planning permission on the short-term market for an altogether period of 90 days or less annually.
The new regulations will require people renting out their homes to register with their local authority.
If someone owns an apartment that they bought as an investment and want to rent it out on Airbnb for specific periods of time, they will now need to seek a special planning permission for this type of use as it is not their principal private residence.
The Department said that in areas of high housing demand (such as Dublin or Cork) it is unlikely that permission would be granted.
Where a house or apartment results in a material change of use, such as the example above, and the owners have not been granted an exemption, this may result in a prosecution for unauthorised development.
According to the Department of Housing, additional resources will be provided within Dublin City Council’s planning section to oversee the registrations and to monitor enforcement.
People found not to be in compliance with these changes will risk criminal conviction under the forthcoming legislation.
With the above information in mind, the Department of Housing has this morning published a number of scenarios homeowners and landlords may find themselves in when it comes to wanting to let rooms.
Here are a few examples:
Mary lives in the two-bedroom house in Cork that she owns near the sea. She wants to let a room occasionally on Airbnb, especially during the summer months. Can she?
Yes, she can let out her room year round, or the entire house for up to 90 days. She has to register with the council for her proposed short-term letting, as well and indicating which days (up to a total of 90) she intends to let out the whole house.
Breda and Martin own an apartment in Temple Bar that they bought as an investment. They used to rent it out to long-term tenants but now prefer to let it through short-term letting sites. They find they are occupied for 40 weekends a year and are nearly always full in the summer. Can they continue the short-term let?
No. Under these new legislative proposals they would need to seek a specific planning permission for this type of use as it is not their principal private residence. As Dublin is in a high demand area, it is unlikely that permission would be granted but this would be a matter for Dublin City Council.
Mike and John own a four-bedroom house which is their principal private residence (PPR). They let one of the rooms to a long-term tenant and the other room they keep on short-term letting websites. They find they have it rented for about 120 days a year. Can they continue?
Yes. If the house is their PPR, they can rent out the rooms on short-term let all year long, using the existing B&B exemptions. They need to register this with the council.
Bigcompany Ltd owns six apartments in a block in Dublin and operates a business renting them out on short-term letting websites for most of the year. Can they?
No, unless they have a specific planning permission that permits short-term letting. Under the proposed legislative changes, they would need a specific planning permission for this type of use, as Dublin is in a high demand area, it is unlikely that permission would be granted but this would be a matter for Dublin City Council.
Friendly Corporate Let Ltd owns a block of apartments which they provide as landing spots to employees of companies in Ireland coming from abroad. How will they be affected?
If the length of stay of each letting exceeds two weeks, then under the new regulations, it would not constitute short-term letting and would be viewed as normal residential use. However, if they operate short-term letting for any individual letting (ie. for periods of less than two weeks at a time), then planning permission will be required for a change of use, unless the permission associated with the property already permits such uses.
Yes.
Amsterdam back in December 2016 signed an accord it hailed as “unique in Europe” with Airbnb banning rentals beyond 60 days a year.
Berlin, which has seen real estate prices soar in recent years, had months earlier passed one of the continent’s strictest regimes to hobble further Airbnb expansion entailing the rental of a maximum one room in one’s dwelling with €100,000 as a deterrent.
Even so, since May, that has been relaxed to allow renting out one’s entire private apartment.
In September, Toronto city introduced new laws which ensure a person can only rent their home as a short-term let if it is their principal residence.
Vancouver, which introduced similar rules, said since the regulations kicked in the number of listings on Airbnb fell from 6,600 in April to 3,742.
As noted above, the new regulations will kick in on 1 June 2019.
However, in order to bring in the changes, amendments to primary planning legislation will now be required.
Minister for Housing Eoghan Murphy said exempted development planning regulations have already been drafted, and amendments to primary legislation currently being drafted will “underpin and strengthen the new proposals”.
With a new licensing system for short-term letting hosts and commercial platforms taking some time to develop and come into force, the new rules will only kick in next summer.
With reporting by Christina Finn and AFP.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
I’m from Dublin Bay South. Its going to take more than appearing on a few talk shows or signing a few petitions before she gets my vote
If the GE was tomorrow who would you vote for? Genuine question.
Same woman was a panelist on TV3 the following night, bye bye Social Democrats you almost had my vote but I have had my suspicions about this lady’s agenda since that time.
Well that was easy. hmmm..
What is her agenda?
What’s wrong with having an agenda?
How can you put yourself up for election WITHOUT an agenda?
This government did and broke all of them…
I will vote social Democrats
Any concrete policies to present to the people yet?
free concrete for over 65s
They sink like a stone?
It sounds like she’s very honest so she should have no problem getting elected.
@Seamus Brady
Lol.
and therein lies the paradox in Irish politics Seamus.
In the Irish political scene,it is harder for an honest citizen to get elected to government, than a camel to make his way through the eye of a needle..
“Micheal D is a nice man but what has he contributed or done in office? I can’t think of anything, other than sign in Irish water legislation true to his Labour roots. Open to correction of course.”
Michael D is a brilliant intellectual in the style of Marx, Lenin, Trotsky etc.
He has seen the implementation of much of his socialist philosophy here in ireland.
The state now provides life long welfare for all public sector officials and employees in current and former state owned companies.
Their pensions are linked to current salaries, and every time a general increase in wages is won by the big unions all retired personnel receive an increase in their pensions.
This is a dream socialist world-but a reality in Ireland.
In addition many retirees can cash in their 15% shareholding in their former workplace companies(Aer Lingus, Telecom Eireann, Bord Na Mona, ESB, etc etc.)
Unhappily those pensioners outside the circle of socialist fraternity have seen their basic old age pension allowances-such as telephone, fuel,- reduced or eliminated in recent years.
They must also work until they are 68 in order to receive a contributory pension.
Many of today’s workers will never qualify for the basic old age pension because the new restrictions require that they must have continuity of employment and contribution stamps for a longer number of years than heretofore.
The miserable cuts in fuel allowances etc do apply to all ALL pensioners regardless of their total pension income so their is an element of socialism in this regard..
Michael is undoubtedly proud of the achievements of his beloved Labour Party in it’s securing of sufficient power in recent elections to ensure that Ireland continues to be a workers paradise for state and semi state employees.
His colleague Brendan Howlin has now negotiated a reversal of the bothersome austerity cuts imposed on state employees in recent years.
Michael makes lovely speeches and dreams of a socialist Utopia.
The fact that the crumbs which make up this Utopian cake are being picked up off the floor, where the rest of society are patiently waiting to eat; does not seem to bother him at all.
Maybe the socialist kingdom in which he lives (and dreams )is-as Jesus Christ himself pointed out- “not of this world”?
She has been on Vincent Browne a few times always thought she was more Sein Fein than any other party Thought she was part of SF plot against Gallagher in presidential debate
Sean Gallagher was a loss to the country in not making President. I think he was a genuine person who had his character deftly and spuriously as disbarred. Micheal D is a nice man but what has he contributed or done in office? I can’t think of anything, other than sign in Irish water legislation true to his Labour roots. Open to correction of course.
“Sean Gallagher was a loss to the country in not making President.”
You need to take a long, hard look at yourself in the mirror. The man was a complete spoofer!
I was wondering, where his supporters were or hiding and shame on you for considering a man like him could be President.
Michael D was the only viable candidate, I never considered anyone else. He’s as clean as a whistle and can make a speech and he seems like a genuinely nice person. He had no choice regarding IW. The president is a figure head, like the Queen he has no real power. Sean was a chancer looking for a cushie number.
“The man was a complete spoofer” and Micheal D isn’t ?. Even with the FF brand Sean Gallagher was sailing ahead before the whole front line debate and it was the popularity of labour rather then a personal vote that got Micheal D over the line. If the presidental election was tommorrow he’d be down in Norris territory
Michael D was clearly head and shoulders above the rest of the candidates for the job………..
The usual Irish fear towards a person of ambition and character. It was always much safer to elect Michael D, a man aligned with the current government and would use it as a retirement position.
Best thing to do would be to scrap the Presidency. Glorified ambassador is all it is and a complete waste of money. President is just a lap dog of the Government signing everything in to law. It is just another job and pension for the Political elite. Pure scam.
I thought the 2 Marys redefined the role of the president in a hugely positive way. Michael D Baggins is a bluster merchant and a thoroughbred champagne socialist.
David Norris would have been wonderful, Ireland wasn’t ready for a gay president
Yeah maybe Norris but sometimes he came off a bit nuts, but I still like him.
We dodged a bullet, or at least a bullet-shaped object, when he was knocked out of the race. Maybe the whole thing was a conspiracy against him, but it was the way he handled it did for him. Not president material.
Absolutely dodged a bullet, remember this is the chap that was going round charging GAA clubs for development plans and an executive member of Fianna Fail… Bullet missed for sure.
That Sean Gallagher was some chancer when he ran for president I wonder where he is now.
He’s an entrepreneur don’t you know!
Great news this. Fine Gael and their Labour buddies will be hard put to find anyone as honest and articulate as Glenna.
Fascinating how Social Democrats just announce candidates – no selection process, no selection conventions. Not very democratic or maybe the reality is that they don’t have any members?
That’s because they’re not very democratic. The Dail brought in legislation for water charges but the three TDs have decided not to pay them. Now if they get into government, what taxes and laws that they introduce should we choose to ignore?
Just what the National Parliament needs; an interior designer. Clearly well qualified to draft legislation for the people of Ireland
That debate was not on Prime Time. It was on The Frontline
Another of Vincent Browne’s recruits. Stephen Donnelly and Peter Matthews made it, some didn’t. Who knows with Glenna
Labour & Fine Gael have much to fear from the #SocDem party.
have your say