AN ONLINE ADVERTISEMENT for a rental property has been removed following a backlash.

The property, located in the side passage of a house in Sutton in Dublin, was listed on Spotahome, a website that advertises mid to long-term rentals.

The property in question Spotahome Spotahome

The property in question Spotahome Spotahome

It was described as a “unique little room that has pretty much all you need” and advertised for a monthly rate of €700.

The description noted: “You can enter the house through the garden … You can get up to the bed by climbing some stairs … You’d only need to enter the main house to use the washing machine.”

There was much criticism of the listing after images of the property, which some people called “a glorified shed”, were shared online.

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Spotahome removed the advertisement after a number of people complained. In a statement the website said it removed the listing because of the feedback it received.

We use our photos, videos and floor plans to show tenants exactly what they are getting. But meeting building regulations is the landlords’ responsibility … this one clearly doesn’t meet legal standards.

As housing demand fars exceeds supply in several areas, rents have spiralled throughout the country, particularly in the capital.

Budget 2019

Budget 2019 includes a number of measures to tackle the growing rental problem. 

Speaking yesterday, Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy acknowledged the difficult reality faced by many renters in Ireland, stating: “Right now people are paying too much.”

He said Budget 2019 will see a 67% increase in Exchequer funding to strengthen the powers of the Residential Tenancies Board and greater local authority inspections in the sector. Murphy also noted that rent caps “need to be strengthened quickly”.

He said legislation later this month will:

• provide that any breach of rent caps can be sanctioned
• strengthen the powers of the Residential Tenancies Board (an additional €4.5 million will be provided in 2019 to support stronger RTB capacity and local authority inspections in the rented sector)
• further tighten the operation of any exemptions
• enhance rental data from RTB registrations to provide more transparency in rents being paid
• double the notice period for renters where a notice to quit is served after six months
• seek to extend rent caps to student accommodation

The first Rent Pressure Zones are due to expire at the end of next year, and Murphy is considering an extension of this measure “given continuing conditions in the rental sector”.

The housing measures included in the Budget were criticised by opposition TDs who said the plans favoured landlords over tenants. 

Sinn Féin’s housing spokesman Eoin Ó Broin said the government “ignored the needs of struggling renters” and “granted an unnecessary tax relief to landlords while doing nothing to reduce rents or halt rent increases”.