IT'S ABOUT time that the Minister for Housing Michael Finneranhas got around to tightening up some of the loopholes in the Residential Tenancies Act.

One of the big problems for landlords in recent years has been residents’ refusal to pay rent while they are in dispute with their landlord. In most cases these disputes take months to sort out.

Once the legislation is amended tenants will obviously have to pay up before their complaints are addressed by the Private Residential Tenancies Board.

Addressing the annual general meeting in Dublin of the Irish Property Owners Association(IPOA), the Minister made a commitment yesterday that he would stop tenants from abusing the system.

He also confirmed that at some future date an online registration and dispute resolution system would be introduced.

Stephen Faughnan, chairman of the IPOA, the national landlords’ representative organisation, welcomed the much needed intervention, stating that it has been a source of huge financial loss to property owners. “In some cases, property owners have lost up to €50,000 during the process of dispute resolution with the PRTB,” he said.

Meanwhile, though tenants may be holding back their rent, a far more serious problem is developing as owners refuse to stump up their service charges on apartment blocks.

Absentee landlords and investors running into financial difficulties are among the offenders, as are owner-occupiers in dispute over the size of the charges.

It's an issue for management companies all over the country, and one that the Irish Property and Facility Management Associationis not too willing to confront.

As it happens, just 10 per cent of its members manage residential developments.