Rent arrears write-off call

A SINN Féin councillor on Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council has called for some rent arrears on the local authority’s books to be written-off.

Cllr Chris Curran said he was shocked by the extent of rent arrears in the council’s administrative area.

According to Cllr Curran, figures show that over 50 per cent (

?¬3.6 million) of all council rents are in arrears to some extent, with over 86 per cent (

?¬3.2 million) of the rent due for four months or more.

“The figures show clearly that council tenants are being squeezed, just like homeowners, and that councils across the country should examine their accounts with a view to writing-off uncollectable debts,

? Cllr Curran said.

“The precedent exists where lenders assisted mortgage holders with their arrears and in some cases wrote-off part of the mortgage arrears. Perhaps the same treatment can be shown to council tenants.

?

He added:

“There’s little doubt that rent arrears have the same stressful effects as those endured by mortgage holders.

?

In a statement, a spokesperson for Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council said they, as with other local authorities, calculate rent for their own social housing properties in accordance with its Differential Rent Scheme.

“Unlike mortgages, differential rents are calculated on the basis of household income with the result that rent charges will increase or decrease as household income increases or decreases,

? a council spokesperson explained.

“The Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council Rents Scheme is a progressive scheme that charges less for those households on a lower income.

“Under the current scheme, rents amount to approximately 13 to 16 per cent of household income with those on lower income paying at the lower rate.

“However, where tenants do fall into arrears, the council has a dedicated Arrears Section that assists tenants in making acceptable arrangements to reduce arrears over time. The council also works with other agencies, for example, MABS in this regard.

“It also provides a dedicated tenancy sustainment service through Focus Ireland to assist tenants who are in serious difficulty with the rent.

“Because rents are determined on the principle of ability to pay, the writing-off of rent arrears would seriously undermine the council’s capacity to collect rental income which funds the maintenance of housing stock and also funds the provision of other services to council tenants.

“It would also be unfair to almost 60 per cent of council tenants who prioritise the payment of rents over other bills and/or purchases.

?

The council spokesperson added that the figure of

?¬3.6 million referred to by Cllr Curran also included temporary backdated charges, some of which will be removed when tenants send in up-to-date documentation as part of the annual rent review.