As Ireland’s only community and tenants union representing tenants in public housing, private housing and emergency accommodation, as well as mortgage holders and people living in direct provision, we believe that the budget in the South offers little more than a sticking plaster over deep cracks in our housing crisis.

Tax breaks for landlords is the order of the day. Cuts to capital gains tax and inheritance tax will hollow out the tax base and reduce the amount of money available to invest in public housing, while shoring up profits for investors and increasing private wealth. 

The background to this budget was a continued and disgraceful rise in the number of people living in emergency accommodation. Private renters are facing untenable costs, poor living conditions, and lack of housing availability. The small increases in the Budget to the Rental Tax Credit cannot keep pace with landlord greed. Market rents have risen more than 80% in ten years. The majority of rental properties fail to meet minimum standards, and short-term lets outnumber long-term homes by 4.1 to 1. Air BNB and short term lets of entire homes dominate our towns and cities, with no meaningful ban in place. Available land is increasingly being swept up for hotels in key locations. Despite this, there is no mention in this budget of an additional tourist tax which could be ringfenced for public housing. 

The Government’s new rental laws, which came into force this year, worsened conditions by allowing landlords to reset rents to market rates in between tenancies, undermining previous rent limits and creating a new wave of evictions. Ireland’s biggest private landlords, IRES REIT plc reported a profit before tax of €48 million for the first half of 2026, tripling from €16 million in the previous period.    

But it’s no coincidence that where there are some progressive gains for tenants in this Budget is where tenants have been organised. We note the small increases made this year to public housing budgets and grants available for retrofitting of public housing. While these increases do not go far enough, our members have fought tooth and nail for progress in these areas and will continue to organise for rent hikes to be dropped and public housing maintenance to be increased. Building and maintaining high quality public housing will also require a dramatic increase in in-house skilled maintenance staff. 

Without rent caps and a reversal of rent hikes, CATU believes that the minimal increases to the minimum wage and social welfare, and the modest reduction in student fees will be quickly wiped out by rising housing costs and increasing utility bills. The elephant in the room with Budget 2027 is the dramatic lack of price controls. Instead we see a continued reliance on the private market which has been shown to fail time and again. Without the provision of  public housing for all, the Government cannot guarantee safe, affordable, and accessible housing. This budget shows once more the urgent need for tenants to come together and organise under the banner of a union. Only then can our voices be heard.