The average renter is in ‘housing distress’.

Kierna Cuddihy reviews the data being compiled by the Residential Tenancy’s Board around the extortionate amount Irish people are paying in rent.

Rents are going to go up in the next five years, as so-called ‘accidental’ landlords plan to exit the market.

That’s according to Irish Times consumer affairs correspondent, Conor Pope.

He was commenting on new figures from the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB), which show one-fifth of renters in Dublin are spending more than half their income on rent.

The latest Rental Sector Survey notes that half the country’s tenants are paying more than 30% of their take-home pay on housing.

The situation is tougher for tenants in the capital – with one-in-five people spending more than half their income on rent and 64% of people spending more than 30%.

The average Dublin tenant is paying 41% of their income on rent – compared to the national average of 36%.

Conor told The Hard Shoulder the situation could be about to get even worse.

“There will be moves by the small landlords, and by small landlords I mean the almost accidental landlords – who might have bought property during the boom years, and then moved into another house and started renting out the property they bought.

“But there’s a significant number of the small landlords [who] plan to exit the market over the next five years.

“That means that supply will contract, and that means that average rents are likely to increase even further.

“So the picture is bleak across the board, really.”

Link do Vídeo