Renters sought advice on 1,460 notices of termination since start of eviction ban

Renters sought advice from housing charity Threshold on 1,460 notices of termination since the start of the current eviction ban, newly-released figures show.

The organisation has raised concern that “unprecedented” numbers of people could become homeless as a result of the Government decision to allow the ban to lapse at the end of March.

The figures offer some indication of the number of evictions that could take place once the ban expires.

The Coalition brought in the temporary moratorium on “no-fault” evictions at the end of October amid the cost-of-living and housing crises. The Cabinet decided to lift the ban on Tuesday, with the Government promising measures aimed at offering some protection for tenants.

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Evictions are set to resume on a phased basis from April onwards, though some tenants will remain protected until mid-June depending on the length of their tenancies.

Minister for Housing Darragh O’Brien has said an estimated 2,700 notices to quit were paused during the moratorium from the end of October last year, though he does not yet have updated official figures from the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB).

He said the RTB will be publishing data soon.

Mr O’Brien said not all notices to quit result in evictions and some happen for reasons such as people moving to different properties.

Figures provided to The Irish Times by Threshold show that 1,460 notices of termination were brought to its attention since the start of the eviction ban.

This is 354 fewer than the same period the previous year.

Some 861 of the notices Threshold is aware of during the period of the eviction ban – or almost 59 per cent – were due to landlords intending to sell properties.

The next highest proportion was instances of landlords or family members planning to move into the properties with 265 queries to Threshold – just over 18 per cent – relating to this.

There were 77 notices of termination due to rent arrears and 43 relating to allegations of antisocial behaviour.

Some 66 notices were issued by landlords due to plans for substantial renovations.

Threshold is a charity that aims to prevent homelessness and offers free advice to people with tenancy problems.

Its chief executive John-Mark McCafferty responded to the Government decision to allow the eviction ban to expire saying it is likely to exacerbate the concerns – and situations – of renters who have received notices of termination.

He said that, overall, Threshold became aware of 5,444 newly-created termination cases in 2022 and that “evidence from the Residential Tenancies Board and our frontline staff indicates a significant number of evictions are pending”.