Kilkenny renters will know what previous tenants paid under new law

KILKENNY renters will be able to know what a previous tenant was paying for their room or property under laws to be brought to Cabinet next week.

Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy has announced plans to set up a ‘rent register’, which would allow people looking to rent a room to see the average prices in a certain location.

The move is among a raft of new measures aimed at clamping down on unscrupulous landlords who are taking advantage of loopholes in the current system.

Minister Murphy also plans to introduce fines for landlords who breach the limitations imposed by the ‘Rent Pressure Zones’ (RPZs).

“I absolutely support rent transparency. And I believe that rent transparency does mean a rent register and I see no reason why we can’t do it like with the property price register,” Mr Murphy said.

The minister was speaking after housing organisation Threshold revealed it received 75,526 calls last year, a third of which were from tenants faced with losing their homes.