What are the new rental rules and how will they affect students?
“A fundamental threat to our nation’s wellbeing, cohesion and social progress” is how Taoiseach Micheál Martin described the housing crisis in 2021. The government’s new housing reforms, introduced in March 2026, are framed by the government as an attempt to balance tenant protections with the need to attract investment and increase supply. Housing Minister James Browne has described the changes as providing “security” for tenants and “certainty” for landlords and investors to drive supply, arguing that increasing supply is the only way to make rents affordable.
A new system of rent controls tied to inflation using the consumer price index has been introduced with annual increases capped at 2%. With an aim to increase investment new builds (construction commenced from 10 June 2025) can rise with inflation without a cap. From now on, when tenancies end properties may be reset to market rates, determined by a rental register.
New tenancies may end for any reason in the first 6 months but after that point will be guaranteed a minimum 6 year security of tenure. From there tenancies may be ended if the tenant breaks their own obligations or the property is considered no longer suitable for their needs. For smaller landlords who own 1-3 properties, they can end tenancies during a 6 year cycle if they or a family member needs to live in the property or they need to sell out of financial hardship. At the end of a 6 year tenancy period they can also end the tenancy if they would like to sell their property or substantially renovate it.
Student specific accommodation is restricted to resets to market rate every three years beginning March 2029.
New rules for a nationwide problem, however, will not affect all equally. In seeking to balance tenancy protections with investment, the structure of the new rules favours long-term tenants. As rent resets occur between tenancies, renters who move more frequently, such as students, are more likely to face higher rents, while long-term tenants benefit from increased security.
In seeking to balance tenancy protections with investment, the structure of the new rules favours long-term tenants. As rent resets occur between tenancies, renters who move more frequently, such as students, are more likely to face higher rents, while long-term tenants benefit from increased security.
Purpose-built student specific accommodation while limited to resets every 3 years beginning in 2029 remains a minority form of accommodation. According to Sherry FitzGerald at the end of 2025, the total stock of PBSA in the State totalled only 47,600 beds. The Higher Education Authority recorded enrollments in third level courses for the 2024/25 academic year at 278,880 students. The most recent eurostudent survey in 2023, found that 55% of all students live away from their parents or other relatives.
Further, as the numbers of people attending third-level education increases these pressures are likely to increase too. While Ireland is demographically ageing, a particularly high baby boom in 2007, rising numbers of international students and increased immigration, mean student numbers are likely to continue increasing.
More than this, new builds subject to rises with inflation are vulnerable to shocks. 6-7% highs like those seen during Covid and the invasion of Ukraine are highly unlikely. However, increasing geopolitical instability like the recent oil shocks in Iran do mean the risk of sharper inflationary spikes cannot be ruled out.
The rental register, used to determine market rates, relies on landlord-reported descriptions of properties in conjunction with rental data. Ensuring the system works effectively and fairly will require enforcement which may prove challenging in practice.
It should not be disguised. Over 17,000 people are homeless with at least 5,000 of those children. Students are but a fraction of a much wider affected population. However, student housing has yet to be addressed through a dedicated strategy, despite its role in supporting higher education and the wider economy. The student specific strategy promised in 2025 by the government has yet to be published. While opposition politicians sporadically discuss student issues, sustained political focus on student housing issues appears limited.
The government’s reforms reflect a clear strategic choice: prioritising supply by improving investment conditions for landlords and investors while attempting to maintain baseline protections for long-term tenants. However, while those in stable, long-term tenancies gain security, more transient renters will face repeated exposure to market resets and rising rents. In a system already under strain, if supply fails to increase at the scale anticipated, these reforms may do less to resolve the crisis than to redistribute its pressures, leaving groups such as students particularly vulnerable.