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A UN SPECIAL Rapporteur on housing has sent a letter to the Irish government noting that they have facilitated housing financing through “preferential tax laws and weak tenant protections among other measures”.
A UN report on housing by Leilani Farha has been called a “wake-up call” for the government by Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald.
The report is highly critical of Ireland, and other countries such as the US and Spain, for allowing vulture funds buy up properties, resulting in skyrocketing rents,
The report states that “landlords have become faceless corporations wreaking havoc with tenants”.
McDonald accused the Taoiseach of allowing corporations make profits on the back of ordinary renters.
Pricing tenants out of their homes
The report states that “almost overnight multinational private equity and asset management firms like Blackstone have become the biggest landlords in the world, purchasing thousands and thousands of units… they have changed the global housing landscape”.
Properties that are deemed ‘undervalued’, which generally means affordable to those living there, are being purchased en masse, renovated, and then offered at a higher rental rate, pricing tenants out of their own homes and communities.
The experts who contributed to the UN report said they had heard countless stories of tenants’ whose buildings had been bought by private equity firms and whose rents had skyrocketed almost immediately afterward, sometimes by 30% to 50%, making it impossible for them to remain in the homes.
Lack of regulations
The UN report says it wishes to remind States of their human rights obligations to regulate investment in residential real estate so that it supports the right to adequate housing and in no way undermines it.
“This cannot be left to the private sector to undertake on a voluntary basis,” the experts said.
They are also critical of the lack of regulations of these vulture funds operating in the housing sector.
“What makes this practice particularly egregious is that it is being done without any monitoring, or accountability mechanisms in place. Governments seem not to have made the connection that this new form of finance is taking place in an area that is governed by international human rights law, which imposes obligations on them. We remind all States, that while gold is a commodity, housing is not, it’s a human right,” states the report.
Breaking international human rights
The report also warns States, such as Ireland, that the use of private equity and asset management firms in housing “in its current form runs afoul of international human rights norms and cannot continue.”
At this time we have identified six States, but there are many more where these same issues are of serious concern, including in the global South. We are ready to engage in a dialogue with all relevant States and financial investors as to how this problem can be addressed,” the experts said.
In raising the report with the Taoiseach today, Mary Lou McDonald appealed to the Taoiseach to support some of the Sinn Féin measures to give tenants more rights.
She called on the government to introduce a three-year rent freeze and to support legislation by Sinn Féin spokesperson Eoin Ó Broin which would prevent buy-to-let landlords from seeking vacant possessions.
Homelessness
In his response Varadkar said didn’t have a chance to read the latest UN report in full.
He admitted that the figure of 10,000 homeless people in Ireland is too high, but said the government will not support the new legislation stating that it is unconstitutional and may breach people’s property rights.
Over the weekend, the Taoiseach told TheJournal.ie that Section 110 incentives, which allowed large funds register as charities, and in turn avoid paying tax, were put in place “at a time when the property prices were on the floor”.
“They were designed to encourage businesses and firms to get involved in buying property at a time when we needed it,” he said, adding that the country is in a different position now, as house prices have “bounced back and building is happening again”.
“In that context we need to review those tax incentives and see if they are still advisable and appropriate,” he said.
Tax loopholes
However, he admitted that despite stating that he would shutdown tax loopholes for such agencies, this will not be done until at least the autumn given that there is only one Finance Bill per year.
Sinn Féin’s Pearse Doherty has called on the Taoiseach to introduce emergency legislation to deal with the issue.
The Master of the High Court Edward Honohan recently said that the European Commission should consider taking a case against Ireland for its preferential tax treatment of vulture funds.
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Apple Green. Keep the extortionate prices down and make some decent filled rolls unlike Topaz and you won’t go far wrong with the public.
Too late.
Topaz deli and coffee is awful.
Most Apple greens are nice and as I driver I appreciate their clean customer toilets the most!
You can spent €100 on diesel in Topaz to be told “sorry there’s no loo. Have some of our watery coffee”
Support local. Buy local.
I refuse to buy any petrol that wasn’t pulled from the ground on these very isles! I’ve been stranded on quite a few occasions and my car hasn’t moved since it ran out of fuel the day I bought it but I’m not changing my ways!
Hope the sub contractors get paid this time unlike what happened at the Lusk service station when it was built.
Not Applegreens fault, they paid the principal contractor who in turn shirt changed the sub contractors.
I should stand to be corrected on that bit that’s what I can recall from memory.
Applegreen is a great spot. Take kids to one in Castlrbellingham. Inside play area is great. Long haul lorry driver appreciate it, a safe place to pull in for the night grab a shower etc.
All good.
The thing you have to remember before you spout the “Buy Irish / Support Irish Jobs” nonsense, is that there are far more people living outside Ireland who consider themselves Irish than there are living on this island.
Therefore when you buy “foreign”, there’s a good chance that you’re supporting somebody who had to emigrate, or the company that game them a job when they had to emigrate, or their descendants. .
Neal,
Correct also what would happen to the economy if trading partners decided to stop buying Irish and to “buy local” think we’d be in a bit of a mess. It’s a 2edged sword
well done Neal, this has to be the stupidest thing I have ever read on the journal. regarding those who “had” to emigrate surely creating jobs in Ireland would enable them to come home.
What about all the family run garages that they will close down, like tesco, lidl and aldi, Irish money making British and German filthy rich companies richer and Irish stores to suffer and close.
People have voted with their feet and / or their level of disposable income.
I’m prob worse than anyone when it comes to aldi or apple green ye gotta love a deal, but that’s because they can buy in such big bulk. The smaller business can’t compete with that, I don’t own a store or know anyone who does, I just think it’s wrong because they open so many stores it doesn’t mean the demand for petrol will be greater it means some small business will eventually close and another Irish family will lose jobs.
Ben applegreen dont really use their economy of scale to keep fuel prices down. I generally find they are the same as any other garage around them price wise.
They sell bad fuel . Low mileage
Anything on where the 6 are?
Just to point out Applegreen is a 100 percent owned and run Irish company that now also branched to the UK and the US. A company that is very modest about their success.
Where are all the shinners complaining about these jobs? Actually where have the shinner bots gone since the elections. It is like the tap has been turned off. And criticism from Gerry and all of the Government has quietened a lot too. Seems they are preparing for Government by pretending they always supported austerity.
Because Applegreen don’t sell dodgy Shinner diesel.
Apple green come in open up company owned sites which eliminate small family businesses.
They use their economies of scale to create price wars and eventually the family owned stores die out. E.g Ennis
These news stories shouldn’t get praise for opening new stores as they will force close others.
You can’t create extra demand for Fuel
There is no service station off the motorway from Dublin to Waterford. (among other long stretches) What they are offering is a product to service motor way traffic not set up in the middle of your town. They are badly needed unless you want children to go to the toilet on the side of the road .
More profit in Lucoazade than petrol
have your say