Rising rents show need 'emergency focus' on Mayo housing supply

The latest rental report from Daft.ie confirms what we’re all seeing on the ground, that rents are rising out of control and Mayo isn’t being spared.

That's according to Councillor Harry Barrett.

He elaborated: "While rents here are still below the national average, they’re going up fast, and the pressure on families, workers and pensioners is growing by the day.

"The national average rent has now broken the €2,000 mark for the first time.

"That’s a 48% jump since the start of the pandemic.This is no longer just a Dublin problem.

"The housing shortage is now biting hard in places like Mayo, where the availability of homes to rent has all but dried up.

"There were just over 2,300 homes available to rent across the whole country at the start of this month – and Mayo would account for only a tiny fraction of that.

"This is one of the lowest totals recorded in 20 years. It’s no wonder that rents keep climbing when people simply have nowhere else to go.

"The time for talk is over. Mayo County Council needs to do a lot more to increase the supply of housing in our towns and villages.

"That means driving forward social and affordable housing projects, using CPO powers to bring derelict properties back into use, and cutting through delays in planning and delivery. And it means directly building homes themselves.

"We also need to be far more ambitious when it comes to using the serviced land and infrastructure around our towns. People are rightly asking what’s the point of these policies if the homes never get built.

"I’m calling for an emergency focus on housing in Mayo County Council.

"We need regular updates on supply, more direct building from Mayo County Council, a government to support direct building and a proper strategy with teeth to tackle dereliction and vacancy.

"Above all, we need action that makes a real difference to renters and families here in Mayo.

"We can’t afford to let this crisis deepen any further. We need to treat this like the emergency it is," he added.