high cost Average rent now €1,745 in Dublin - and it's still on rise despite Covid-19 protections

The average rent in Dublin, the most expensive area nationally, is now €1,745 a month, a 2.1pc rise year-on-year.

Rents grew nationally by 2.7 in the last quarter of last year

Charlie Weston

March 25 2021 03:00 AM

THE cost of renting a home rose last year to an average of €1,256 a month despite Covid-19 rent protections being in place.

Renting a place was 2.7pc more expensive across the State in 2020 compared with the year before, the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) said.

But this was a slower rate of growth than the 6.4pc recorded in 2019.

The rise is despite legislation put in place by Housing Minister Darragh O'Brien to protect tenants from eviction if they have been badly affected by the pandemic and are facing rent arrears.

The legislation also allowed for a rent freeze for tenants whose income was affected by the pandemic.

Rent controls have been in place in rent pressure zones since 2016 to try to temper an overheating rental market.

The RTB said the average rent in Dublin, the most expensive area nationally, is now €1,745 a month, a 2.1pc rise year-on-year.

The counties with the lowest monthly rents were Donegal and Leitrim at €626 a month.

Between last October and December, eight counties had standardised average rents above €1,000 a month.

These were Cork, Dublin, Galway, Kildare, Limerick, Louth, Meath, and Wicklow.

The area with the fastest rise in rents in the last three months of last year was Co Longford, which recorded a rise of 8.3pc.

The county with the largest year-on-year drop in rents was Waterford, with rents there down 13pc.

Interim director at the RTB, Padraig McGoldrick, said the affect of Covid-19 on the rental sector continued into the final three months of last year. But he insisted that rents were moderating.

The national standardised average rent remained static in the period covering October to December.

"Overall in the year, there had been a significant trend of moderation in rental inflation relative to previous years.

"While there has been a definite trend in moderation in rent levels, it is clear affordability issues and related risks remain."

Covid-19 presented challenges for those living in the rental sector, Mr McGoldrick said.

"We continue to encourage those who are experiencing issues in their tenancies to keep lines of communication open and if they still cannot resolve their dispute to contact the RTB for support and information on how to resolve these matters."