Local Sinn Féin TD Ann Graves has said that workers and families are being “sold out” to large landlords.
Research carried out by the party found that 79% of private homes in Dublin are owned by landlords, with 75% of that figure qualifying as “large landlords” meaning they own multiple properties as part of a larger portfolio.
Of the almost 9,000 new private homes registered with Revenue so far in 2025, just 20% – or 1 in 5 – were bought by an individual or a family.
The Swords TD blamed the government’s free market belief system and pro-developer sentiment for locking ordinary people out of the chance of owning a home.
“Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael have engineered a situation where the housing system is rigged against individuals and in favour of large landlords. This is echoed by CSO figures that show house prices are spiralling out of control as landlords dominate the housing market,” she said.
Dublin isn’t the only part of the country feeling the pinch from landlords; half of all private homes for sale in Ireland were brought by landlords with multiple properties.
Of the more than 18,000 private properties newly registered with Revenue last year for property tax, more than half were registered by landlords with multiple properties. 9 out of 10 of those are landlords with over ten properties.
Graves said the statistics are “yet another shocking indictment of the government’s housing policy.”
“We know that since Fine Gael came to power, homeownership among younger people has plummeted, with the number of people under the age of 40 who own their own home being cut in half. Since teaming up with Fianna Fáil the situation has only gotten worse.
She remarked, “no wonder so many young people feel they have no future here in Ireland, the odds are stacked against them.”
“This is a landlord government with a landlord agenda. This has been designed and implemented in ruthless fashion. Workers and families have been locked out of homeownership so they could be driven into the arms of corporate landlords.
“Urgent action is needed to stop the sell-off,” she said.