Brendan Burgess
Founder
- Messages
- 53,723
Over 50% of Dublin local authority tenants in arrears
- Thread starter Brendan Burgess
- Start date
Because over half are under 12 weeks and the numbers over 1 year are relatively low, are LA tenants using their rent payments as solutions to temporary cash flow issues?
Or is it standard practice to be a few months behind on rent on an ongoing basis? looks like it
Or is it standard practice to be a few months behind on rent on an ongoing basis? looks like it
It certainly is eye opening, particularly as LA rents are a world away from market rents.
Two noticeable points stand out to me from the report.
1/ The Local Government Efficiency Review Group (July, 2010) recommended that social housing rents should be deducted directly from social welfare payments. Section 53 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2014 provides for the deduction of local authority rents and rent arrears from social welfare payments. However, this section of the Act has not been applied.
2/ It is Dublin City Council’s policy to apply retrospective debits to accounts where there has been an under-declaration of household income/occupants, and this is the primary reason accounts have large debit balances. Rent is assessed on household income and it is the responsibility of the tenant to keep the Council informed of any changes to income or family composition. The highest proportion of current arrears in Dublin City Council was incurred in 2009 following retrospective assessments of income/occupants which brought previously undeclared income to attention.
It is reasonable that rent and arrears be deducted from welfare payments. There are presumably workers on lower incomes also renting LA accommodation. How can these be encouraged to pay in accordance with their rental agreement?
Two noticeable points stand out to me from the report.
1/ The Local Government Efficiency Review Group (July, 2010) recommended that social housing rents should be deducted directly from social welfare payments. Section 53 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2014 provides for the deduction of local authority rents and rent arrears from social welfare payments. However, this section of the Act has not been applied.
2/ It is Dublin City Council’s policy to apply retrospective debits to accounts where there has been an under-declaration of household income/occupants, and this is the primary reason accounts have large debit balances. Rent is assessed on household income and it is the responsibility of the tenant to keep the Council informed of any changes to income or family composition. The highest proportion of current arrears in Dublin City Council was incurred in 2009 following retrospective assessments of income/occupants which brought previously undeclared income to attention.
It is reasonable that rent and arrears be deducted from welfare payments. There are presumably workers on lower incomes also renting LA accommodation. How can these be encouraged to pay in accordance with their rental agreement?