Over 5,000 families benefiting from Housing Authority rental subsidies

The Housing Authority has paid €42 million over five years since 2019 in schemes that support low-income families’ rent payments, and subsidies on pre-1995 rental homes.

Over 4,400 families are benefitting from the two separate schemes: the Housing Benefit Scheme and the Pre-1995 Rent Subsidy Scheme, which are targeted towards specific demographics based on age and income. 

While the Housing Benefit Scheme reaches a broader range of age groups, the Pre-1995 Rent Subsidy Scheme targets a narrower cohort, with more than 90% of its beneficiaries over 60 years old.

The number of households that benefitted from these schemes nearly doubled between 2019 and 2023, from around 2,898 in 2019 to 5,176 in 2023.

Spending on both schemes reached €8.6 million in the first half of 2024. A noticeable increase was observed in the Pre-1995 Rent Subsidy Scheme, with nearly 70% of the amount invested in 2023 being taken up within just the first six months of this year.

The Housing Authority has spent nearly €7 million this year to cover rental increases for families living in properties bound by pre-1995 leases.

Approximately 2,140 families have benefitted from rental subsidies introduced as part of a major reform of the pre-1995 rent laws carried out three years ago. The reform was intended to wipe away a law that courts had repeatedly deemed to be unconstitutional, because landlords could neither evict tenants nor increase the rent for properties that were leased before 1995.

As part of the reform, the new value of the rent of such properties is established by the Rent Regulation Board, following an architect's evaluation. 

To qualify, landlords must first file for a review of the rent. If successful, they can then claim up to two per cent of the property’s market value in rent.

Pensioners and social welfare beneficiaries living in properties bound by pre-1995 leases get their rental costs covered in full by the state up to a maximum of €10,000 per year, per family.

Tenants in full-time employment are expected to spend up to 25% of their income on rent, with the state paying the balance up to that €10,000 yearly maximum.   

In concrete terms, this means tenants experience only a minimal increase in rent, an adjustment made possible through a dedicated government subsidy.