New laws are being introduced to crack down on short term lettings like AirBnB.
The government is hoping stricter rules will free up more homes for the private rental market.
Under the new plans people will only be allowed to rent a room on a short term basis if it’s in their primary residence.
They’ll be allowed to let out a room all year, or the entire home for a maximum of 90 days a year.
The homeowner will also now have to register their short term lettings with their local council.
Any secondary property owned can’t be used for short term letting unless planning permission is approved, and it will be up to each local planning board to decide whether or not to give that based on housing demands in the area.
So a landlord with four homes can use their own house for short term lettings, but would need planning permission in the other three which is unlikely to be granted in areas where housing is scarce.
It’s hoped this will stop the practice of private rental accommodation being taken off the market for use on sites like AirBnB which can be more financially lucrative.
Homeowners will also have to notify their local planning authority as to how many days a year the property is used as a short term let.
The rule changes will come in on June 1st 2019 and will define short term letting as the use of bedrooms as guest accommodation for a maximum of two weeks.
Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy has said it’s unacceptable that rental homes are being withdrawn from the market for use as short term lettings in a time when there’s a housing shortage.
