At least 1.2m unoccupied bedrooms in Ireland, according to Census
In That Cork, Rooms There Galway And 73,000 Is Are Dublin, In Estimated In Spare It 139,000 Over 250,000
Homeowners are being urged to rent out spare rooms as data from Census night 2022 shows at least 1.2m bedrooms were unoccupied in the country.
As of April 3 last year, 389,000 (21%) of the total households in Ireland had two or more spare bedrooms, according to HomeHak.com.
It is estimated that there are 250,000 spare rooms in Dublin, 139,000 in Cork, and over 73,000 in Galway.
With healthcare workers, teachers, students, and homeless people all struggling to find accommodation there are calls for older people to consider letting out a room.
Lecturer in Social Policy at Maynooth University, Rory Hearne, said the rent-a-room scheme needs to be promoted more.
Homeowners can earn up to €14,000 a year tax-free by renting a room.
A person does not need to pay tax on this income up to €14,000 and social welfare entitlements and medical card eligibility will not be affected.
"That equates to about €1,100 a month in rent that they would be able to charge someone and they can earn that tax-free which is a significant incentive," said Mr Hearne.
"Some people have said that maybe people are not aware of this."
However, Lucie Cunningham founder of The Home Share, says while they support co-living and room rental there must be safety for older people.
"We would be very cautious in advising people to rent out a room. If they do rent out a room, to make sure that they either know the person very well or they work with an organisation," said Ms Cunningham.
The Home Share matches elderly people — mostly those over the age of 85 — with suitable tenants in an arrangement that is mutually beneficial.
"The accommodation-seeker lives there rent-free so what they offer the older person or the person with disabilities is 10 hours a week of company, a helping hand around the house, maybe help with shopping, going out for walks or drives together and crucially, that overnight presence for peace of mind," said Ms Cunningham.
There are also suggestions that a bedroom tax could work to incentivise people to rent out a room.
However, Declan, who has a home with two spare bedrooms in Wicklow, said that is not clear cut.
"What does 'being used' mean? Is it that someone sleeps in it? Or is it that it is used as a study or used as a studio or storage?
"I would argue that all of the rooms in my house — regardless of whether there is somebody is sleeping in the room or not — are being used," he said.
Home-seekers and prospective tenants are also being urged to consider renting rooms rather than looking for an entire property, given the current shortage.