Just 12 properties available to rent within HAP scheme limits in September, charity says

Just 12 properties were available to rent within any of the housing assistance payment (HAP) scheme limits in September, according to the latest report from the Simon Communities of Ireland.

There were 1,361 properties available to rent at any price within the 16 areas surveyed over three different dates during the month, an increase of 4 per cent since June’s survey and up 63 per cent from 12 months ago.

The figures are included in the housing charity’s quarterly Locked Out of the Market report, the third conducted since changes to rental laws came into effect last March.

There was one property available for single person/couple households within standard HAP limits located in Dublin city south.

The HAP scheme is a social housing payment made to landlords by local authorities, where tenants pay a contribution to their local authority. To avail of HAP, the landlord’s rent must be within the limits for the household type and local authority area.

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Eleven out of the 16 areas had no properties available within HAP limits, including Athlone, Cork city centre, Cork city suburbs, Limerick city centre, Sligo town, Portlaoise and Waterford city centre.

Four of the 16 areas saw a reduction in the number of HAP properties available since the previous report in June – Dublin city north, Dublin city south, Dublin city centre and Kildare.

As seen in many previous reports, the supply of properties within any HAP limits is predominantly in Dublin.

Ber Grogan, executive director of the Simon Communities of Ireland, said the organisation had hoped that last month’s budget would “finally deliver the long-awaited increase to HAP limits but, once again, there has been no change”.

“Over the last 10 years, rents have risen dramatically, becoming unaffordable for many households, while there’s been little change to HAP,” she said.

“As a result, people who rely on HAP are increasingly locked out of the private rental market, unable to secure a home they can afford despite having housing support in place. We see the impact of this every single day, across the country.”

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Grogan added that increasing HAP limits would be “an immediate, practical step” the Government could take to help people to access housing.

“It is time for the Government to listen, act and ensure HAP reflects the reality of today’s rental market, while addressing the wider problem of unaffordable rents.”

Sligo town had the lowest number of properties available to rent, with nine properties available across the three dates.

When compared with the June report, five of the 16 areas saw a reduction in the number of properties available to rent.

The charity said for the purpose of their report studio apartments were not included in the overall figure for HAP properties. However, there were 25 studio apartments available within HAP limits during the period.