The latest rent figures published today show that Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael housing policy failures have resulted in a social and economic disaster, according to Social Democrats TD Rory Hearne.
Deputy Hearne, who is the party’s housing spokesperson, said:
“According to the latest analysis by daft.ie, the average open market rent nationwide is now over €2,000 a month. This means rents are almost seven per cent more than one year ago.
“Shockingly, rents are now 51 higher than before the outbreak of Covid-19, and are up a staggering 100 per cent since the Celtic Tiger.
“At these rates, rents have become completely unsustainable and paint a deeply depressing picture of our worsening housing emergency.
“Today’s figures will be met with despair by students who will be anxiously trying to find accommodation as they start into college life. Sadly, some will be forced to defer their third level education because of unaffordable rents and will be denied the student experience of living away from home that many of us enjoyed.
“The generation stuck living in their parents’ homes will also be left wondering when they will get to start their independent lives.
“For years, our calls for a rent freeze – something that still needs to happen – have fallen on deaf ears. This has significantly contributed to the skyrocketing rents we see today.
“A point that often gets lost in this debate is that many people do not want to be renting but, through no fault of their own, have found themselves locked out of the housing market. They are stuck in a dysfunctional rental sector simply because they have nowhere to move to.
“To structurally tackle this crisis, we need see to see the State lead on affordable housing delivery instead of being reliant on a small number of large developers and institutional investors. This could be done through not-for-profit Approved Housing Bodies, the Land Development Agency or direct builds at scale by local authorities.
“FF/FG have let the housing crisis spiral to this point where it is a social disaster. We urgently need radical measures that will treat it as the emergency that it is.”
August 25, 2025